Open AccessConsiderations on the multiplexing and diversity tradeoff in IEEE 802.11 networks
Author(s) -
Babich Fulvio,
Comisso Massimiliano,
Crismani Alessandro
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
iet communications
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.355
H-Index - 62
eISSN - 1751-8636
pISSN - 1751-8628
DOI - 10.1049/iet-com.2013.0741
Subject(s) - computer science , multiplexing , diversity (politics) , computer network , orthogonal frequency division multiplexing , telecommunications , ieee 802.11 , wireless , wireless network , political science , channel (broadcasting) , law
Multiple‐input multiple‐output (MIMO) techniques have received a considerable attention from the research community for their promising performance in faded environments, and particular interest has been given to the physical (PHY) layer implications of the tradeoff between multiplexing and diversity. This study discusses this tradeoff extending the analysis to the medium access control (MAC) layer. To this purpose, a theoretical model for assessing the performance of an 802.11 network that relies on a MIMO‐enabled PHY layer is presented. The proposed model characterises the different MIMO systems in terms of their multiplexing gain and bit error rate performance, considering both the diversity gain of the specific MIMO scheme and the impact of the spatial distribution of the nodes. The results compare, from a MAC layer perspective, the benefits of multiplexing and diversity, providing some analytic insights on the tradeoff between increasing the system's reliability and enhancing the data rate of the single link.