On ASER performance of higher order QAM schemes in two‐way multiple‐relay networks under imperfect CSI

Abstract

In this study, the authors present an analytical approach to evaluate the performance of a two-way multi-relay system with direct link using a three-phase analogue network coding and opportunistic relay selection scheme. Herein, the imperfect channel state information is considered over independent and non-identically distributed Nakagami-m fading channels with integer-valued fading parameter. For analysis, initially, the closed-form expressions of cumulative distribution function and moment generating function (MGF) for the considered system are derived. Further, by using the MGF-based approach, generalised expressions of average symbol error rate (ASER) for higher-order quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) schemes such as hexagonal QAM, rectangular QAM, and cross QAM are derived. They then analyse the asymptotic behaviour of ASER expression to evaluate the system's diversity order. Furthermore, a comparative analysis of the ASER performance for various QAM constellations is illustrated and impact of the number of relays, fading parameter, relay location, and channel estimation error are highlighted on the system's performance. Finally, all the analytical results are validated through Monte-Carlo simulations.