Performance analysis of wireless relay systems

There has been phenomenal interest in applying space-time coding techniques in wireless communications in the last two decades. In general, the benefit of applying space-time codes in multiple-input, multiple-output (MIMO) wireless channels is an increase in transmission reliability or system throughput (capacity). However, such a benefit cannot be obtained in some wireless systems where size or other constraints preclude the use of multiple antennas. As such, wireless relay communications has recently been proposed as a means to provide spatial diversity in the face of this limitation. In this approach, some users or relay nodes assist the transmission of other users’ information. This dissertation contributes to the advancement of wireless relay communications by investigating the performance of various relaying signal processing methods under different practical fading environments. In particular, it examines two main relaying methods, namely decode-and-forward (DF) and amplify-and-forward (AF). For DF, the focus is on the diversity analysis of relaying systems under various practical protocols when detection error at relays is taken into account. In order to effectively mitigate the phenomenon of error propagation, the smart relaying technique proposed by Wang et al. in [R1] is adopted. First, diversity analysis of a single-relay system under the scenario that only the relay is allowed to transmit in the second time slot (called Protocol II) is carried out. For Nakagami and Hoyt generalized fading channels, analytical and numerical results are provided to demonstrate that the system always obtains the maximal diversity when binary phase shift keying (BPSK) modulation is used. Second, a novel and low-complexity relaying system is proposed when smart relaying and equal gain combing (EGC) techniques are combined. In the proposed system, the destination requires only the phases of the channel state information in order to detect the transmitted signals. For the single-relay system with M-ary PSK modulation, it is shown that the system can achieve the maximal diversity under Nakagami and Hoyt fading channels. For the K-relay system, simulation results suggest that the maximal diversity can also be achieved. Finally, the diversity analysis for a smart relaying system under the scenario when both the source and relay are permitted to transmit in the second time slot (referred to as Protocol I) is presented. It is shown that Protocol I can achieve the same diversity order as Protocol II for the case of 1 relay. In addition, the diversity is very robust to the quality of the feedback channel as well as the accuracy of the quantization of the power scaling implemented at the relay. For AF, the dissertation considers a fixed-gain multiple-relay system with maximal ratio combining (MRC) detection at the destination under Nakagami fading channels. Different from the smart relaying for DF, all the channel state information is assumed to be available at the destination in order to perform MRC for any number of antennas. Upperbound and lowerbound on the system performance are then derived. Based on the bounds, it is shown that the system can achieve the maximal diversity. Furthermore, the tightness of the upperbound is demonstrated via simulation results. With only the statistics of all the channels available at the destination, a novel power allocation (PA) is then proposed. The proposed PA shows significant performance gain over the conventional equal PA

Wireless networks physical layer security : modeling and performance characterization

Intrigued by the rapid growth and expand of wireless devices, data security is increasingly playing a significant role in our daily transactions and interactions with different entities. Possible examples, including e-healthcare information and online shopping, are becoming vulnerable due to the intrinsic nature of wireless transmission medium and the widespread open access of wireless links. Traditionally, the communication security is mainly regarded as the tasks at the upper layers of layered protocol stack, security techniques, including personal access control, password protection, and end-to-end encryption, have been widely studied in the open literature. More recently, plenty of research interests have been drawn to the physical layer forms of secrecy. As a new but appealing paradigm at physical layer, physical layer security is based on two pioneering works: (i) Shannon’s information-theoretic formulation and (ii) Wyner’s wiretap formulation. On account of the fundamental of physical layer security and the different nature of various wireless network, this dissertation is supposed to further fill the lacking of the existing research outcomes. To be specific, the contributions of this dissertation can be summarized as three-fold:(i) exploration of secrecy metrics to more general fading channels; (ii) characterization a new fading channel model and its reliability and security analysis in digital communication systems; and (iii) investigation of physical layer security over the random multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) α −μ fading channels. Taking into account the classic Alice-Bob-Eve wiretap model, the first contribution can be divided into four aspects: (i) we have investigated the secrecy performance over single-input single-output (SISO) α −μ fading channels. The probability of non-zero (PNZ) secrecy capacity and the lower bound of secrecy outage probability (SOP) are derived for the special case when the main channel and wiretap channel undergo the same non-linearity fading parameter, i.e., α. Later on, for the purpose of filling the gap of lacking closed-form expression of SOP in the open literature and extending the obtained results in chapter 2 to the single-input multiple-output (SIMO) α − μ wiretap fading channels, utilizing the fact that the received signal-tonoise ratios (SNRs) at the legitimate receiver and eavesdropper can be approximated as new α −μ distributed random variables (RVs), the SOP metric is therefore derived, and given in terms of the bivariate Fox’s H-function; (ii) the secrecy performance over the Fisher-Snedecor F wiretap fading channels is initially considered. The SOP, PNZ, and ASC are finalized in terms of Meijer’s G-function; (iii) in order to generalize the obtained results over α −μ and Fisher-Snedecor F wiretap fading channels, a more flexible and general fading channel, i.e., Fox’s H-function fading model, are taken into consideration. Both the exact and asymptotic analysis of SOP, PNZ, and average secrecy capacity (ASC), are developed with closed-form expressions; and (iv) finally, motivated by the fact that the mixture gamma (MG) distribution is an appealing tool, which can be used to model the received instantaneous SNRs over wireless fading channels, the secrecy metrics over wiretap fading channels are derived based on the MG approach. Due to the limited transmission power and communication range, cooperative relays or multi-hop wireless networks are usually regarded as two promising means to address these concerns. Inspired by the obtained results in Chapters 2 and 3, the second main contribution is to propose a novel but simple fading channel model, namely, the cascaded α −μ. This new distribution is advantageous since it encompasses the existing cascaded Rayleigh, cascaded Nakagami-m, and cascaded Weibull with ease. Based on this, both the reliability and secrecy performance of a digital system over cascaded α −μ fading channels are further evaluated. Closed-form expressions of reliability metrics (including amount of fading (AF), outage probability, average channel capacity, and average symbol error probability (ABEP).) and secrecy metrics (including SOP, PNZ, and ASC) are respectively provided. Besides, their asymptotic behaviors are also performed and compared with the exact results. Considering the impacts of users’ densities, spatial distribution, and the path-loss exponent on secrecy issue, the third aspect of this thesis is detailed in Chapter 8 as the secrecy investigation of stochastic MIMO system over α −μ wiretap fading channels. Both the stochastic geometry and conventional space-time transmission (STT) scheme are used in the system configuration. The secrecy issue is mathematically evaluated by three metrics, i.e., connection outage, the probability of non-zero secrecy capacity and the ergodic secrecy capacity. Those three metrics are later on derived regarding two ordering scheme, and further compared with Monte-Carlo simulations

Advanced Trends in Wireless Communications

Physical limitations on wireless communication channels impose huge challenges to reliable communication. Bandwidth limitations, propagation loss, noise and interference make the wireless channel a narrow pipe that does not readily accommodate rapid flow of data. Thus, researches aim to design systems that are suitable to operate in such channels, in order to have high performance quality of service. Also, the mobility of the communication systems requires further investigations to reduce the complexity and the power consumption of the receiver. This book aims to provide highlights of the current research in the field of wireless communications. The subjects discussed are very valuable to communication researchers rather than researchers in the wireless related areas. The book chapters cover a wide range of wireless communication topics

Multi-Connectivity Techniques for Improved performance in Mobile Communications

Multi-Connectivity (MC) techniques play a significant role in enhancing the performance and reliability of mobile communication systems. These techniques aim to improve network connectivity by utilising multiple simultaneous connections between a mobile device and base stations or access points. Among other multiple benefits, MC techniques can provide increased data rates and enhanced link reliability, both of which are of extreme relevance to the new use cases introduced in the Fifth Generation (5G) of mobile communication systems, namely enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB), Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency Communication (URLLC) and massive Machine Type Communication (mMTC). MC techniques are equally important for the future Sixth Generation (6G) technology services and applications, where data rates and link reliability requirements will be even more demanding than in the previous generation. In this context, this thesis proposes some novel MC techniques with the potential to significantly improve both aspects (i.e., data rate and reliability) in mobile communication systems. First, a MC framework based on Carrier Aggregation (CA) is proposed. CA was originally proposed as a technique to combine spectrum from different bands into a single virtual chunk of spectrum for the higher layers of the protocol stack. In this thesis, a novel framework where CA is exploited as a diversity technique is proposed. The idea is to divide a large block of contiguous spectrum into a number of adjacent sub-blocks, where each of them is treated as an individual Component Carrier (CC) according to CA and therefore runs an independent transmission process. The motivation for this approach is to benefit from the diversity experienced at different frequencies. This idea is evaluated by means of simulations and the obtained results indicate that CA can effectively be exploited as a diversity technique to increase network capacity, with the optimum number of CCs depending on the radio propagation scenario. The simulation results indicate that the use of CA as a diversity technique, as proposed in this thesis, can enhance the obtained data rate up to almost five times with respect to the case where only one CC is employed. Subsequently, a mathematical model is developed to characterise the performance of CA as a diversity technique. The model is first used to characterise the channel capacity as a function of the number of CCs and other relevant parameters, which is shown to explain and corroborate the findings derived from simulation results. Capitalising on the developed mathematical model, the impact of various relevant configuration parameters on the performance of CA as a diversity technique is then evaluated. In such a study, not only the ergodic capacity but also the secrecy capacity are both considered and investigated. The results demonstrate that the proposed mathematical modelling approach can correctly predict the performance of CA as a diversity technique as well as the impact of various relevant configuration parameters. Finally, a hybrid transmission scheme for improved link reliability is also proposed. The proposed hybrid system benefits from the range of frequency bands available in mobile communication systems and their complementary characteristics. Higher-frequency bands tend to provide larger bandwidths (i.e., higher data rates) but are also characterised by more challenging propagation conditions (i.e., lower link reliability), while the opposite is true in general for lower-frequency bands. To exploit these complementary characteristics, a hybrid system is proposed that dynamically switches between both bands according to the instantaneous channel quality. The obtained results demonstrate that such a hybrid scheme not only improves dramatically the transmission reliability but also has the potential to simultaneously increase the capacity while efficiently exploiting the resources in both bands. Concretely, for a reliability requirement of 10−5, the proposed scheme can provide an 8/9-fold increase in the communication range of the main link in the higher-frequency bands by only reducing 2%-4% the availability of the backup link in the lower-frequency bands. Moreover, the attained high level of link reliability is not obtained at the expense of the link capacity, which is indeed improved by applying the proposed scheme. These findings suggest that the proposed scheme is a suitable technique to effectively meet the URLLC requirements for 5G/6G in a resource-efficient manner. In summary, the MC techniques developed in this thesis can provide significant improvements in terms of enhanced data rates and reliability for current and future 5G/6G mobile communication systems

Realistic geometry-based stochastic channel models for advanced wireless MIMO systems

The employment of multiple antennas at both the Transmitter (Tx) and Receiver (Rx) enables the so-called Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO) technologies to greatly improve the link reliability and increase the overall system capacity. MIMO has been recommended to be employed in various advanced wireless communication systems, e.g., the Fourth Generation (4G) wireless systems and beyond. For the successful design, performance test, and simulation of MIMO wireless communication systems, a thorough understanding of the underlying MIMO channels and corresponding models are indispensable. The approach of geometry-based stochastic modelling has widely been used due to its advantages, such as convenience for theoretical analysis and mathematical tractability. In addition, wireless Vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V) communications play an important role in mobile relay-based cellular networks, vehicular ad hoc networks, and intelligent transportation systems. In V2V communication systems, both the Tx and Rx are in motion and equipped with low elevation antennas. This is di erent from conventional Fixed-to-Mobile (F2M) cellular systems, where only one terminal moves. This PhD project is therefore devoted to the modelling and simulation of wireless MIMO channels for both V2V and F2M communication systems. In this thesis, we rst propose a novel narrowband Three Dimensional (3D) theoretical Regular-Shape Geometry Based Stochastic Model (RS-GBSM) and the corresponding Sum-of-Sinusoids (SoS) simulation model for non-isotropic MIMO V2V Ricean fading channels. The proposed RS-GBSM has the ability to study the impact of the Vehicular Tra c Density (VTD) on channel statistics and jointly considers the azimuth and elevation angles by using the von Mises-Fisher (VMF) distribution. Moreover, a novel parameter computation method is proposed for jointly calculating the azimuth and elevation angles in the SoS channel simulator. Based on the proposed 3D theoretical RS-GBSM and its SoS simulation model, statistical properties are derived and thoroughly investigated. The impact of the elevation angle in the 3D model on key statistical properties is investigated by comparing with those of the corresponding Two Dimensional (2D) model. It is demonstrated that the 3D model is more practical to characterise real V2V channels, in particular for pico-cell scenarios. Secondly, actual V2V channel measurements have shown that the modelling assumption of Wide Sense Stationary (WSS) is valid only for very short time intervals. This fact inspires the requirement of non-WSS V2V channel models. Therefore, we propose a novel 3D theoretical wideband MIMO non-WSS V2V RS-GBSM and corresponding SoS simulation model. Due to the dynamic movement of both the Tx and Rx, the Angle of Departure (AoD) and Angle of Arrival (AoA) are time-variant, which makes our model non-stationary. The proposed RS-GBSMs are su ciently generic and adaptable to mimic various V2V scenarios. Furthermore, important local channel statistical properties are derived and thoroughly investigated. The impact of non-stationarity on these channel statistical properties is investigated by comparing with those of the corresponding WSS model. The proposed non-WSS RS-GBSMs are validated by measurements in terms of the channel stationary time. Thirdly, realistic MIMO channel models with a proper trade-o between accuracy and complexity are indispensable for the practical application. By comparing the accuracy and complexity of two latest F2M standardised channel models (i.e., LTE-A and IMT-A channel models), we employ some channel statistical properties as the accuracy metrics and the number of Real Operations (ROs) as the complexity metric. It is shown that the LTE-A MIMO channel model is simple but has signi cant aws in terms of the accuracy. The IMT-A channel model is complicated but has better accuracy. Therefore, we focus on investigating various complexity reduction methods to simplify the IMT-A channel model. The results have shown that the proposed methods do not degrade much the accuracy of the IMT-A channel model, whereas they can signi cantly reduce the complexity in terms of the number of ROs and channel coe cients computing time. Finally, to investigate the non-stationarity of the IMT-A MIMO channel model, we further propose a non-WSS channel model with time-varying AoDs and AoAs. The proposed time-varying functions can be applied to various scenarios according to moving features of Moving Clusters (MCs) and a Mobile Station (MS). Moreover, the impacts of time-varying AoDs and AoAs on local statistical properties are investigated thoroughly. Simulation results prove that statistical properties are varied with time due to the non-stationarity of the proposed channel model. In summary, the proposed reference models and channel simulators are useful for the design, testing, and performance evaluation of advanced wireless V2V and F2M MIMO communication systems

Abstracts on Radio Direction Finding (1899 - 1995)

The files on this record represent the various databases that originally composed the CD-ROM issue of "Abstracts on Radio Direction Finding" database, which is now part of the Dudley Knox Library's Abstracts and Selected Full Text Documents on Radio Direction Finding (1899 - 1995) Collection. (See Calhoun record https://calhoun.nps.edu/handle/10945/57364 for further information on this collection and the bibliography). Due to issues of technological obsolescence preventing current and future audiences from accessing the bibliography, DKL exported and converted into the three files on this record the various databases contained in the CD-ROM. The contents of these files are: 1) RDFA_CompleteBibliography_xls.zip [RDFA_CompleteBibliography.xls: Metadata for the complete bibliography, in Excel 97-2003 Workbook format; RDFA_Glossary.xls: Glossary of terms, in Excel 97-2003 Workbookformat; RDFA_Biographies.xls: Biographies of leading figures, in Excel 97-2003 Workbook format]; 2) RDFA_CompleteBibliography_csv.zip [RDFA_CompleteBibliography.TXT: Metadata for the complete bibliography, in CSV format; RDFA_Glossary.TXT: Glossary of terms, in CSV format; RDFA_Biographies.TXT: Biographies of leading figures, in CSV format]; 3) RDFA_CompleteBibliography.pdf: A human readable display of the bibliographic data, as a means of double-checking any possible deviations due to conversion