Using best-path selection combining technique for examining multi-hop multi-branch amplify-and-forward relaying cooperative network performance over Nakagami-m fading channels
Arwa Sh. Aqel, Mamoun F. Al‐Mistarihi, Khalid Ahmad Darabkh · Results in Engineering · 2025
The use of diversity techniques has grown as the wireless communication network performance has improved. Within this work, a cooperative diversity system employing multi-hop amplify-and-forward (AF) relaying with best-path selection in a multi-branch topology assuming no direct source-destination link is investigated. The proposed system's performance is evaluated in terms of average bit error rate (ABER) and outage probability (OP), considering phase shift keying modulation scheme through a Nakagami-m slow flat fading channel that is independent and non-identical. In the performance analysis, the effect of the relay 's relative distance between source and destination, modulation order and the network topology are examined on system reliability. The results show that increasing the number of relays enhances reliability, while increasing the number of branches reduces the OP, enhancing its overall robustness and enabling it to determine the best path. The analytical and Monte Carlo simulation results are similar as well. The suggested system has practical applications in 5G and the Internet of Things wireless networks requiring reliable data transmission.