Intelligent Reflecting Surfaces in Wireless Powered Communication Networks
Summary
Intelligent reflecting surfaces (IRSs) represent a novel paradigm for enhancing the spectral and energy efficiency of wireless powered communication networks (WPCNs). By deploying large arrays of low-cost passive elements that impose controllable phase shifts on incoming signals, IRSs can shape the propagation environment to favour both wireless energy transfer and information transmission. In a typical WPCN, a dedicated energy source broadcasts radio-frequency energy to power multiple devices, which then use the harvested energy to send data back to a fusion centre. The integration of IRSs into this framework enables dynamic beamforming without the need for additional radio-frequency chains, thereby extending coverage, improving energy harvesting rates and boosting data throughput. Key challenges include accurate channel estimation, joint design of transmit beamformers and surface phase shifts, and the development of low-complexity algorithms that can be implemented on resource-constrained devices. Practical applications span Internet of Things deployments, mobile edge computing offloading and secure communication in next-generation networks, promising greener and more reliable wireless services worldwide.
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Intelligent Reflecting Surfaces in Wireless Powered Communication Networks publication trend
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Technical terms
Intelligent reflecting surface (IRS): A planar array of passive or active elements that can electronically adjust the phase of reflected radio waves to control signal propagation.
Wireless powered communication network (WPCN): A network in which devices harvest energy from dedicated wireless transmissions and then use that energy to communicate.
Simultaneous wireless information and power transfer (SWIPT): A technique enabling concurrent delivery of energy and data over the same wireless link via power-splitting or time-switching architectures.
Phase shift matrix: A diagonal matrix whose entries represent the controllable phase adjustments applied by each IRS element.
Beamforming: The spatial shaping of transmitted or received signals using coordinated antenna arrays or reflective surfaces to maximise signal strength and directivity.
References
- Intelligent Reflecting Surfaces for Sum-Rate Maximization in Cognitive Radio Enabled Wireless Powered Communication Network. IEEE Access (2023).
- Wireless Energy Harvesting for Autonomous Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces. IEEE Transactions on Green Communications and Networking (2022).
- Energy Minimization for IRS-Assisted SWIPT-MEC System. Sensors (2024).
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