  The recently proposed Golden code is an optimal space-time block code for 2 X
2 multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) systems. The aim of this work is the
design of a VLSI decoder for a MIMO system coded with the Golden code. The
architecture is based on a rearrangement of the sphere decoding algorithm that
achieves maximum-likelihood (ML) decoding performance. Compared to other
approaces, the proposed solution exhibits an inherent flexibility in terms of
modulation schemes QAM modulation size and this makes our architecture
particularly suitable for adaptive modulation schemes.
