SNR Maximization at CSI Aware AF Relay

This paper concerns two-hop communication over relay-assisted Block fading channel. It is assumed there is not a direct link between the transmitter and the affiliated destination and the communication occurs in two hops through the use of a relay, where the amplify and forward (AF) strategy is employed at this node. In this case, in a Rayleigh block fading channel, the optimal weight function at the relay in terms of maximizing the received signal to noise ratio (SNR) at the destination is derived, assuming the relay is aware of channel gains associated with both hops and that the relay is subject to an average power constraint. Finally, the resulting SNR is compared to the case of having a peak power constraint at the relay which is served as a benchmark throughout the simulations.