Tera-Hybrid: Integration of Intelligent Reflecting Surface and Unmanned Aerial Vehicle on Terahertz enabled Hybrid Network

Description

Terahertz (THz) communication is envisioned as the key enabler to support the exponential traffic growth of the sixth generation (6G) wireless networks. Nevertheless, the stand-alone deployment of THz band communication can not offer ubiquitous coverage due to its limited coverage and low penetrability. At the device level, the short transmission range of the THz band can be mitigated by using high gain directional beamforming. However, to adopt the THz band as a pillar technological enabler of 6G networks and promote industry uptake, it is critical to developing a cohesive network infrastructure between THz, millimeter wave (mmWave), and radio frequency (RF) band that can support and supplement the THz communication by utilizing smart reflection and multi-hop transmissions.This project aims to design a hybrid wireless network of THz, mmWave, and RF bands, integrated with the intelligent reflecting surface (IRS) and unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). The key challenge of the proposed project is the lack of an analytical framework to evaluate the THz network's performance and assess the dependencies across different RF bands, which are still open problems due to the complex propagation characteristics of the THz band. This project will utilize novel technology concepts, namely interference modeling in the THz band, stochastic geometry analysis of non-Poisson Point Process (PPP), and channel modeling of multi-hop IRS assisted transmission. The proposed network design can 1) treat THz/ mmWave/ RF band as a shared pool of radio resources and flexibly utilize the resources based on the link quality, 2) provide optimal quality of service to the end-users, and 3) achieve ubiquitous coverage. We aim to develop an analytical framework to evaluate the performance of IRSUAV-assisted THz hybrid networks, including achievable rates, coverage, outage probability, and energy efficiency. Besides interference modeling, we will design a cooperative beam routing for a multi-IRS assisted THz hybrid network, where we will consider the impact of IRS mounted on the UAV / or on terrestrial objects.To validate the performance of the proposed network design, we will develop a software testbed of the IRS-UAV-assisted THz hybrid network, where the adopted propagation parameters will be directly measured from facilities within City University of Hong Kong. The successful accomplishment of this project will establish a performance benchmark of the hybrid THz/ mmWave/ RF network and enable a unified design of the IRS-UAV-assisted THz hybrid network. This project will significantly contribute to increasing Hong Kong’s global competitiveness in the wireless communication industry.