Towards Intrinsic Molecular Communication Using Isotopic Isomerism

In this paper we introduce a new approach for molecular communication (MC). The proposed method uses isotopomers as symbols in a communication scenario, and we name this approach isotopic molecular communication (IMC). We propose a modulation scheme based on isotopic isomerism, where symbols are encoded via isotopes in molecules. This can be advantageous in applications where the communication has to be independent from chemical molecular concentration. Application scenarios include nano communications with isotopes in a macroscopic environment, i.e. encoding freshwater flow of rivers or drinking water utilities, or medical applications where blood carries isotopomers used for communication in a human or animal body. We simulate the capacity of communication in the sense of symbols per second and maximum symbol rate for different applications. We provide estimations for the symbol rate per distance and we demonstrate the feasibility to identify isotopes reliably. In summary, this isotopic molecular communication is a new paradigm for data transfer independent from molecular concentrations and chemical reactions, and can provide higher throughput than ordinary molecular communications