Cross-Layer Design for Wireless Networks Using Antenna Arrays

OF THE DISSERTATION Cross-Layer Design for Wireless Networks Using Antenna Arrays by Ece Gelal Doctor of Philosophy, Graduate Program in Computer Science University of California, Riverside, August 2009 Professor Srikanth V. Krishnamurthy, Chairperson One of the major problems experienced by wireless multi-hop networks is the intermittent network connectivity, which is a consequence of fluctuating link quality due to signal fading. Antenna array technology has been proposed to alleviate the problem of signal fading, and it provides significant performance increase on a single link. However, translating this link-level performance increase to an end-to-end gain in multi-hop networks is not straightforward; a cross-layer design is necessary to efficiently facilitate this translation. In this dissertation, we present cross-layer design approaches for providing end-to-end performance increase in multi-hop networks using antenna arrays. Each approach is designed to utilize a special capability with antenna arrays. Using antenna arrays, nodes can increase the signal strength in a specific direction; i.e., perform directional communications. Using directional communications in a multi-hop network requires nodes to periodically update the directions of their neighbors, which introduces an overhead. We propose topology control algorithms that enable the use of directional communications in multi-hop networks with bounded