Concentration shift keying (CSK) is a widely adopted modulation technique for
molecular communication-based nanonetworks, which is a key enabler for the
Internet of Bio-NanoThings (IoBNT). However, existing methods provide optimal
error performance at the cost of high operational complexity that scales poorly
as the number of transmitters, K, increases. This paper proposes a novel
M-ary CSK method termed CSK with Common detection Thresholds (CSK-CT). CSK-CT
uses common thresholds that are sufficiently low to ensure the
reliable detection of symbols transmitted by every transmitter, regardless of
their distance. We derive closed-form expressions to obtain the common
thresholds and release concentrations. To enhance the error performance, we
optimize the release concentration using a scaling exponent that further
optimizes the common thresholds. We evaluate the performance of CSK-CT in
comparison to the benchmark CSK for varying values of K and M. In terms of
the error probability, CSK-CT offers between 10β7 and 10β4, which are
a substantial improvement from the 10β4 to 10β3 offered by the
benchmark. In terms of complexity, CSK-CT is O(n) and does
not scale with K but M (MβͺK), while the benchmark is
O(n2). Furthermore, CSK-CT showcased the ability to
mitigate inter-symbol interference, although this facet warrants further
investigation. Due to its low error probability, improved scalability, low
complexity, and potential ISI mitigation features, CSK-CT demonstrates benefits
in applications of IoBNT focused on data-gathering. Specifically, its utility
is well-noted in settings where a computationally strained receiver collects
sensitive health-related data from multiple transmitters.Comment: Submitted to IEEE for possible publicatio