Coverage Analysis of Decode-and-Forward Relaying in Millimeter Wave Networks

In this paper, we demonstrate the coverage probability improvement of a millimeter wave (mmWave) network due to the deployment of spatially random decode-and-forward (DF) relays. We assume the transmitter and receiver are located at a fixed distance and that the potential relay nodes are spatially distributed as a two dimensional homogeneous Poisson point process (PPP). We first derive the spatial distribution of decoding set of relays that meet the required signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) threshold. From this set, we select a relay that has minimum path- loss from the receiver and derive the coverage probability achievable due to this selection. The analysis is based on stochastic geometry and is verified via Monte-Carlo simulation. The coverage probabilities of (a) direct link without relaying and (b) relayed link are compared to show that relaying provides significant coverage improvements.