Design, Analysis and Computation in Wireless and Optical Networks

abstract: In the realm of network science, many topics can be abstracted as graph problems, such as routing, connectivity enhancement, resource/frequency allocation and so on. Though most of them are NP-hard to solve, heuristics as well as approximation algorithms are proposed to achieve reasonably good results. Accordingly, this dissertation studies graph related problems encountered in real applications. Two problems studied in this dissertation are derived from wireless network, two more problems studied are under scenarios of FIWI and optical network, one more problem is in Radio- Frequency Identification (RFID) domain and the last problem is inspired by satellite deployment. The objective of most of relay nodes placement problems, is to place the fewest number of relay nodes in the deployment area so that the network, formed by the sensors and the relay nodes, is connected. Under the fixed budget scenario, the expense involved in procuring the minimum number of relay nodes to make the network connected, may exceed the budget. In this dissertation, we study a family of problems whose goal is to design a network with “maximal connectedness” or “minimal disconnectedness”, subject to a fixed budget constraint. Apart from “connectivity”, we also study relay node problem in which degree constraint is considered. The balance of reducing the degree of the network while maximizing communication forms the basis of our d-degree minimum arrangement(d-MA) problem. In this dissertation, we look at several approaches to solving the generalized d-MA problem where we embed a graph onto a subgraph of a given degree. In recent years, considerable research has been conducted on optical and FIWI networks. Utilizing a recently proposed concept “candidate trees” in optical network, this dissertation studies counting problem on complete graphs. Closed form expressions are given for certain cases and a polynomial counting algorithm for general cases is also presented. Routing plays a major role in FiWi networks. Accordingly to a novel path length metric which emphasizes on “heaviest edge”, this dissertation proposes a polynomial algorithm on single path computation. NP-completeness proof as well as approximation algorithm are presented for multi-path routing. Radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology is extensively used at present for identification and tracking of a multitude of objects. In many configurations, simultaneous activation of two readers may cause a “reader collision” when tags are present in the intersection of the sensing ranges of both readers. This dissertation ad- dresses slotted time access for Readers and tries to provide a collision-free scheduling scheme while minimizing total reading time. Finally, this dissertation studies a monitoring problem on the surface of the earth for significant environmental, social/political and extreme events using satellites as sensors. It is assumed that the impact of a significant event spills into neighboring regions and there will be corresponding indicators. Careful deployment of sensors, utilizing “Identifying Codes”, can ensure that even though the number of deployed sensors is fewer than the number of regions, it may be possible to uniquely identify the region where the event has taken place.Dissertation/ThesisDoctoral Dissertation Computer Science 201

Characteristics of pattern formation and evolution in approximations of physarum transport networks

Most studies of pattern formation place particular emphasis on its role in the development of complex multicellular body plans. In simpler organisms, however, pattern formation is intrinsic to growth and behavior. Inspired by one such organism, the true slime mold Physarum polycephalum, we present examples of complex emergent pattern formation and evolution formed by a population of simple particle-like agents. Using simple local behaviors based on Chemotaxis, the mobile agent population spontaneously forms complex and dynamic transport networks. By adjusting simple model parameters, maps of characteristic patterning are obtained. Certain areas of the parameter mapping yield particularly complex long term behaviors, including the circular contraction of network lacunae and bifurcation of network paths to maintain network connectivity. We demonstrate the formation of irregular spots and labyrinthine and reticulated patterns by chemoattraction. Other Turing-like patterning schemes were obtained by using chemorepulsion behaviors, including the self-organization of regular periodic arrays of spots, and striped patterns. We show that complex pattern types can be produced without resorting to the hierarchical coupling of reaction-diffusion mechanisms. We also present network behaviors arising from simple pre-patterning cues, giving simple examples of how the emergent pattern formation processes evolve into networks with functional and quasi-physical properties including tensionlike effects, network minimization behavior, and repair to network damage. The results are interpreted in relation to classical theories of biological pattern formation in natural systems, and we suggest mechanisms by which emergent pattern formation processes may be used as a method for spatially represented unconventional computation. © 2010 Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Sparse Hop Spanners for Unit Disk Graphs

A unit disk graph G on a given set of points P in the plane is a geometric graph where an edge exists between two points p,q ? P if and only if |pq| ? 1. A subgraph G\u27 of G is a k-hop spanner if and only if for every edge pq ? G, the topological shortest path between p,q in G\u27 has at most k edges. We obtain the following results for unit disk graphs. 1) Every n-vertex unit disk graph has a 5-hop spanner with at most 5.5n edges. We analyze the family of spanners constructed by Biniaz (2020) and improve the upper bound on the number of edges from 9n to 5.5n. 2) Using a new construction, we show that every n-vertex unit disk graph has a 3-hop spanner with at most 11n edges. 3) Every n-vertex unit disk graph has a 2-hop spanner with O(nlog n) edges. This is the first nontrivial construction of 2-hop spanners. 4) For every sufficiently large n, there exists a set P of n points on a circle, such that every plane hop spanner on P has hop stretch factor at least 4. Previously, no lower bound greater than 2 was known. 5) For every point set on a circle, there exists a plane 4-hop spanner. As such, this provides a tight bound for points on a circle. 6) The maximum degree of k-hop spanners cannot be bounded from above by a function of k

The Steiner Ratio for the Obstacle-Avoiding Steiner Tree Problem

This thesis examines the (geometric) Steiner tree problem: Given a set of points P in the plane, find a shortest tree interconnecting all points in P, with the possibility of adding points outside P, called the Steiner points, as additional vertices of the tree. The Steiner tree problem has been studied in different metric spaces. In this thesis, we study the problem in Euclidean and rectilinear metrics. One of the most natural heuristics for the Steiner tree problem is to use a minimum spanning tree, which can be found in O(nlogn) time . The performance ratio of this heuristic is given by the Steiner ratio, which is defined as the minimum possible ratio between the lengths of a minimum Steiner tree and a minimum spanning tree. We survey the background literature on the Steiner ratio and study the generalization of the Steiner ratio to the case of obstacles. We introduce the concept of an anchored Steiner tree: an obstacle-avoiding Steiner tree in which the Steiner points are only allowed at obstacle corners. We define the obstacle-avoiding Steiner ratio as the ratio of the length of an obstacle-avoiding minimum Steiner tree to that of an anchored obstacle-avoiding minimum Steiner tree. We prove that, for the rectilinear metric, the obstacle-avoiding Steiner ratio is equal to the traditional (obstacle-free) Steiner ratio. We conjecture that this is also the case for the Euclidean metric and we prove this conjecture for three points and any number of obstacles