Effective Capacity of Selection Combining for AF Relaying Protocol subject to Independent Weibull Fading Channels

Abstract

Path loss, shadowing, and multipath fading significantly deteriorate transmitted signals in wireless communication systems. By facilitating relay-assisted transmission between the source and destination, cooperative diversity has become a successful strategy to counteract fading effects. The amplify-and-forward (AF) technique provides a useful trade-off between performance and complexity among several relay protocols. This research studies how well selection combining works in AF cooperative diversity systems that use separate Weibull fading channels. The main focus is on effective capacity, which is measured at both moderate and high signal-to-noise ratios. The study also provides clear formulas to help understand how the system performs. Monte Carlo simulations confirm that the generated expressions are accurate and align with the theoretical results. The findings also show that selection combining, as a simple diversity method, offers strong robustness and efficiency for future cooperative wireless networks in Weibull fading conditions.