Abstract
This study focuses on identifying an optimised synchronisation word based on multiple practical criteria for wireless internet-of-things systems, where reliable and energy-efficient synchronisation is essential to extend battery life by reducing unnecessary receiver activations (wake-ups) and false detections. To address the limitations of purely theoretical designs, a weighted multi-criteria evaluation framework is presented specifically tailored for resource-constrained receivers (e.g., IQRF). A mathematical receiver model utilising a correlation detector operating in additive white Gaussian noise is formulated, and the effects of synchronisation-word selection on detectability and the rate of false detections are analytically determined for both fixed alignment and sliding-window search methods. The methodology is augmented by laboratory measurements conducted on a pair of parallel Texas Instruments receivers. The resulting data are compared with theoretical expectations, and both agreements and discrepancies are analysed in terms of their underlying causes and system-level implications. The results yield practical design recommendations for low-power wireless internet-of-things devices, including recommendations on bit balance, suppression of aperiodic autocorrelation sidelobes, robustness to cyclic shifts, and diminished cross-correlation with recurring traffic patterns, demonstrating that the proposed framework identifies synchronisation words that reduce false alarms by orders of magnitude compared to standard baselines.
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Data availability
The dataset for and scripts used in this study is available at https://doi.org/10.21227/rn06-dw82
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Funding
The research was co-funded with the financial support of the European Union under the REFRESH - Research Excellence For REgion Sustainability and High-tech Industries project number CZ.10.03.01/00/22_003/0000048 via the European Just Transition Fund, next by the project TAČR FW10010287 “KITR - Comprehensive Transceiver Module Innovation for Wireless Mesh Networks and Global Competitiveness” and next by the project of the Ministry of Education of the Czech Republic under project SP2026/025, “Development of Algorithms and Systems for Control, Measurement and Safety Applications XII” of Student Grant System, VSB-TU Ostrava.
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D.V., M.S., and R.H. conceived and designed the experiments. R.H. and J.V. performed the experiments. M.S. analysed the data. R.H. contributed materials and analytical tools. M.S. processed the state of the art. M.S. and M.P. wrote the paper. R.H. and M.P. supervised the entire research and ensured the publication of the scientific article. The manuscript was drafted by M.S. and J.V. and reviewed and edited by all co-authors. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
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Skula, M., Pies, M., Hajovsky, R. et al. Multi-criteria selection of a synchronisation word for low-power IoT receivers based on the IQRF standard. Sci Rep (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-38142-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-38142-1
