In this work, the metric expression for a generic linear space-time block code (STBC) is studied using a different approach to vectorization, which leads to a new representation of the metric expression. The new representation lends itself to a simple measure of reliability based on the sum of inner products, and provides a quantifiable definition for minimum distance of a STBC. This provides a framework for a new family of near-ML and ML decoding algorithms. It also has applications in the development of optimality test criteria for STBCs, as well as in the design of STBCs with low decoding complexity.
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