Advancing Non-Line-of-Sight Communication: A Comprehensive Review of State-of-the-Art Technologies and the Role of Energy Harvesting.

Abstract

Enhancing spectral efficiency in non-line-of-sight (NLoS) environments is essential as 5G networks evolve, surpassing 4G systems with high information rates and minimal interference. Instead of relying on traditional Orthogonal Multiple Access (OMA) systems to tackle issues caused by NLoS, advanced wireless networks adopt innovative models like Non-Orthogonal Multiple Access (NOMA), cooperative relaying, Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO), and intelligent reflective surfaces (IRSs). Therefore, this study comprehensively analyzes these techniques for their potential to improve communication reliability and spectral efficiency in NLoS scenarios. Specifically, it encompasses an analysis of cooperative relaying strategies for their potential to improve reliability and spectral efficiency in NLoS environments through user cooperation. It also examines various MIMO configurations to address NLoS challenges via spatial diversity. Additionally, it investigates IRS settings, which can alter signal paths to enhance coverage and reduce interference and analyze the role of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) in establishing flexible communication infrastructure in difficult environments. This paper also surveys effective energy harvesting (EH) strategies that can be integrated with NOMA for efficient and reliable energy-communication networks. Our findings show that incorporating these technologies with NOMA not only enhances connectivity and spectral efficiency but also promotes a stable and environmentally sustainable data communication system.