DFT domain characterization of quasi-cyclic codes

The transform domain characterization of linear cyclic codes over finite fields using Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) over an appropriate extension field is well known. In this paper, we extend this transform domain characterization for linear quasi-cyclic codes over finite fields. We show how one can derive a lower bound on the minimum Hamming distance of a quasi-cyclic code and decode the code upto that minimum Hamming distance using this characterization