On the Reliability Function of Variable-Rate Slepian-Wolf Coding

The reliability function of variable-rate Slepian-Wolf coding is linked to the reliability function of channel coding with constant composition codes, through which computable lower and upper bounds are derived. The bounds coincide at rates close to the Slepian-Wolf limit, yielding a complete characterization of the reliability function in that rate region. It is shown that variable-rate Slepian-Wolf codes can significantly outperform …