Radio channel modeling for mobile ad hoc wireless networks

Abstract

The radio channel places fundamental limitations on the performance of mobile ad hoc wireless networks. In the mobile radio environment, fading due to multipath delay spread impairs received signals. The purpose of this thesis is to develop a radio channel model and examine the effect of various parameters on channel behavior that is representative of environments in which mobile ad hoc wireless networks operate. The various physical phenomena considered are outdoor environments, fading and multipath propagation, type of terrains, and mobility (Doppler shift). A channel model based on a Tapped Delay Line (TDL) structure was developed and implemented in the MATLAB programming language, and the performance of the time-varying channel was studied by plotting the signal constellations. The simulation results indicate that the number of taps required in the TDL is 8 or less and the carrier frequency did not influence the performance significantly. The Jakes Doppler spectrum should be used in urban environments with high mobility; the Gaussian Doppler spectrum is the choice for low mobility urban environments and for the hilly terrain under both low and high mobility.