Superluminal propagation and information transfer: A statistical approach in the microwave domain

Signal velocity is calculated in a medium with negative group delay (NGD). By accounting for the medium and the detector noise sources, the time varying probability of error at the detector Pe(t)$\mathit{Pe}(t)$] is evaluated in the NGD channel and a normal dispersion channel. The scheme in which Pe(t)$\mathit{Pe}(t)$ falls below a threshold at earlier time, implies faster information transfer. It is found that the signal velocity depends on the detector type and the relative noise strength of the detector with respect to the channel. Finally, it is shown that NGD channels can be useful in applications that are limited by the detector noise.