124 J. OPT. COMMUN. NETW./VOL. 7, NO. 2/FEBRUARY 2015
Bhatnagar
Performance of an Amplify-and-Forward
Dual-Hop Asymmetric RF–FSO
Communication System
Sanya Anees and Manav R. Bhatnagar
Abstract—In this work, the performance and the capac-
ity analysis of a fixed-gain amplify-and-forward (AF)-based
dual-hop asymmetric radio frequency–free space optical
(RF–FSO) communication system is performed. The RF link
experiences Nakagami-m fading and the FSO link experien-
ces Gamma–Gamma turbulence. For this mixed RF–FSO
cooperative system, novel and finite power series-based
mathematical expressions for the cumulative distribution
function, probability density function, and moment gener-
ating function of the end-to-end signal-to-noise ratio are
derived. Using these channel statistics new finite power
series-based analytical expressions are obtained for the
outage probability, the average bit error rate (BER) for
various binary and M-ary modulation techniques, and the
average channel capacity of the considered system. The
same analysis is also performed for the scenario when the
FSO link undergoes significant pointing errors along with
the Gamma–Gamma distributed turbulence. As a special
case analytical expressions for the outage probability, BER,
and channel capacity are also presented for a dual-hop
asymmetric RF–FSO system where the RF link is Rayleigh
distributed. Simulation results validate the proposed math-
ematical analysis. The effects of fading, turbulence, and
pointing error are studied on the outage probability, aver-
age BER, and the channel capacity.
Index Terms—Amplify-and-forward relaying; Bit error
rate; Channel capacity; Free space optical (FSO) communi-
cation; Gamma–Gamma turbulence; Nakagami-m fading;
Outage probability; Rayleigh fading.
I. INTRODUCTION
F ree-space optical (FSO) communication systems have
various advantages such as providing cheap installa-
tion and operational cost with easy deployment, license-
free spectrum, immunity to interference, and high data
rate (10 Gbps); this makes them appealing for various ap-
plications in terrestrial and satellite communication [1,2],
e.g., last-mile access, backhauling services, data recovery,
high definition transmission, and so on. However, the per-
formance of the FSO systems is highly dependent on the
Manuscript received June 9, 2014; revised October 30, 2014; accepted
December 20, 2014; published January 30, 2015 (Doc. ID 213505).
S. Anees is with the Bharti School of Telecommunications Technology
and Management, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, New Delhi 110016,
India.
M. R. Bhatnagar (e-mail: manav@ee.iitd.ac.in) is with the Department of
Electrical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, New Delhi
110016, India.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1364/JOCN.7.000124
1943-0620/15/020124-12$15.00/0
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Sanya Anees and Manav R.
atmospheric conditions and the pointing errors [1–3]. The
misalignment between the transmitter and the receiver of
the system is caused due to the vibrations in the transmit-
ted beams of tall buildings (resulting from wind, earth-
quakes, thermal expansion, and so on) and it leads to
pointing errors.
In order to minimize the effect of turbulence and point-
ing errors, various solutions have been proposed such as
radio on FSO, in which radio frequency (RF) signals are
transmitted through FSO links [4]; hyrbid RF–FSO, where
the parallel RF link is used as a backup for FSO links [5];
multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) techniques [6];
and cooperative communication [7–14]. Employing re-
laying technology in the FSO systems helps in broadening
the coverage area and enhancing the performance and
capacity of the systems.
In [7], the outage probability is derived for FSO co-
operative systems using amplify-and-forward (AF) and
decode-and-forward (DF) relays, where the channel is char-
acterized by both path-loss as well as log-normal fading.
The study of a mixed RF–FSO cooperative system has been
performed (from the outage probability point of view) in [8],
where the AF relay possesses hybrid RF and optical capa-
bilities; it receives signals from the Rayleigh distributed
RF link and forwards the received signals over the
Gamma–Gamma distributed FSO link, by using the sub-
carrier intensity modulation (SIM) scheme [15]. An exten-
sion to [8] is done in [9], where the bit error rate (BER)
performance and the capacity analysis of an AF-based
dual-hop mixed RF–FSO is presented, where the RF links
follow the Rayleigh distribution and the FSO link is char-
acterized by the Gamma–Gamma distributed turbulence
and pointing errors. In [12], the outage probability is de-
rived for mixed RF–FSO cooperative systems having AF re-
lay nodes, where the RF channel follows Rayleigh fading
and the FSO follows a new proposed M-distributed turbu-
lence. A multiuser DF-based dual-hop cooperative system
over mixed RF–FSO links is studied in [13]. The system
comprises multiple single-antenna sources, a DF relay,
and one destination equipped with a single photo-detector.
The impact of pointing errors on the outage probability and
BER of the considered system is investigated. In [14], the
error performance of a 3-node relay network is analyzed
where the source broadcasts the RF signal using quadra-
ture amplitude modulation (QAM). The relay estimates
and quantizes the log-likelihood ratio (LLR) of each
© 2015 Optical Society of America
Sanya Anees and Manav R. Bhatnagar
received bit in the symbol, and then transmits the corre-
sponding information to the destination through a high-
speed FSO link or a hybrid RF–FSO link. It is observed
that optimal symbol mapping can provide performance
improvement of several dBs over conventional FSO trans-
missions that employ “on” and “off” for binary 1 and 0,
respectively.
In this work, we perform the end-to-end performance
and capacity analysis of a dual-hop asymmetric RF–FSO
communication system, using a fixed-gain AF relay. The
AF relay uses the SIM technique to transmit the optical
signal to destination. In the considered system, the RF link
follows the Nakagami-m distribution and the FSO link fol-
lows the Gamma–Gamma distribution. Our main contribu-
tions are as follows: 1) novel finite power series-based
mathematical expressions for various statistical character-
istics such as the cumulative distribution function (CDF),
the probability density function (PDF), and the moment
generating function (MGF) of the asymmetric RF–FSO sys-
tem, under the influence of fading and atmospheric turbu-
lence; 2) novel finite power series-based mathematical
expressions for the CDF, the PDF, and the MGF of the
asymmetric RF–FSO system, under the effect of fading,
turbulence, and significant pointing errors; 3) finite power
series-based new analytical expression for the outage prob-
ability, the BER for various binary and M-ary modulation
techniques, and the ergodic channel capacity of the consid-
ered system, where the FSO channel is characterized by
the atmospheric turbulence; 4) finite power series-based
new analytical expressions for the outage probability, the
BER for various binary and M-ary modulation techniques,
and the ergodic channel capacity of the considered system,
where the FSO channel is characterized by the atmos-
pheric turbulence and the pointing errors; 5) mathematical
expressions for the outage probability, BER, and ergodic
channel capacity of mixed Rayleigh distributed RF and
Gamma–Gamma distributed FSO system as a special case;
and 6) analysis on the effects of fading, turbulence, and
pointing errors on the outage probability, the BER perfor-
mance, and the average channel capacity of the fixed-gain
AF-based dual-hop asymmetric RF–FSO communication
system.
II. SYSTEM MODEL
Consider a mixed dual-hop RF–FSO communication sys-
tem, where the source (S) communicates with the destina-
tion (D), using a fixed-gain AF relay (R) as shown in Fig 1.
Fig. 1. System model of AF-based dual-hop asymmetric RF–FSO
system.
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VOL. 7, NO. 2/FEBRUARY 2015/J. OPT. COMMUN. NETW. 125
The S-R and the R-D links, in this mixed system, are as-
sumed to be RF and FSO links, respectively, where the RF
link is assumed to be Nakagami-m distributed and the FSO
link is assumed to be Gamma–Gamma distributed. The R
converts the RF signal to an optical signal using the SIM
technique [15], amplifies it by a fixed-gain G, and then
transmits it to D via the FSO link.
The signal received by R from S, over the RF link, can be
written as
ys;r
hs;r x  es;r ; (1)
where x denotes the signal transmitted by S, esr repre-
sents the complex-valued additive white Gaussian noise
(AWGN) with zero-mean and σ 2s;r as the variance, and
hs;r denotes the Nakagami-m distributed channel gain of
the S-R link. From Eq. (1), the instantaneous signal-
to-noise ratio (SNR) received at R will be γ s;r

Es;r jhs;r j2 ∕σ 2s;r
jhs;r j2 γ̄ s;r , where Es;r denotes the average
power of the RF signal, and γ̄ s;r
Es;r ∕σ 2s;r denotes the
average SNR of the S-R link. It can be shown after some
algebra that the PDF of γ s;r will be Gamma distributed
and is given by


mm γ m−1 mγ
f γ s;r γ
exp − ; (2)
Γmγ̄ m
s;r γ̄ s;r
where m ≥ 1∕2 is the Nakagami parameter, and Γ· is
the Gamma function.
At the AF-based relay, the received RF signal is con-
verted into an optical signal using the SIM scheme and
transmitted to D. After the dc component is removed,
the complex signal received by D from R can be written
as [11]
yr;d
Ir;d Gηr;d hs;r x  es;r   er;d ;

Ir;d Gηr;d hs;r x  I r;d Gηr;d es;r  er;d : (3)
where G is the fixed-gain of the R; ηr;d is the electrical-to-
optical conversion coefficient; er;d denotes the zero-mean
AWGN noise with variance, σ 2r;d ; and I r;d with EfIr;d g
1,
where Ef·g stands for expectation, is the irradiance caused
by the FSO link.
The R-D (FSO) link of the considered asymmetric co-
operative system can be characterized in the following
two ways.
A. Under Atmospheric Turbulence
ab
2ab 2 ab−1  p
f Ird I
I 2 K a−b 2 abI : (4)
ΓaΓb
In Eq. (4), K ν · is the modified Bessel function of the sec-
ond kind of order ν, and a and b represent the effective
number of large-scale and small-scale eddies (respectively)
of the scattering process. These terms are related to atmos-
pheric conditions and depend upon the FSO link length, L;
126 J. OPT. COMMUN. NETW./VOL. 7, NO. 2/FEBRUARY 2015 Sanya Anees and Manav R. Bhatnagar

operating wavelength, λ; and the refractive-index structure Gaussian irradiance surface, which is not true as the
h   i−1
0.49σ 2l on-axis scintillation can be different from the off-axis
parameter, C2n as a
exp 12∕5 7∕6 −1 and
11.11σ l  scintillation [1,3]. Also this model considers negligible off-
h  2
 i−1
0.51σ l
b
exp 12∕5 5∕6 − 1 , where the Rytov variance axis turbulence. However, this model for the unified effect
10.69σ l 
of the parameters works well for small pointing errors.
σ 2l
1.23C2n k7∕6 L11∕6 , in which wave number k
2π∕λ [15].
The instantaneous received SNR at D (γ z ) can be written
by using Eq. (3): III. CHANNEL STATISTICS

γ s;r γ r;d The mathematical expressions of CDF, PDF, and MGF of

γz
; (5)
γ r;d  C the AF-based dual-hop asymmetric RF–FSO systems are
derived for the two scenarios, considering atmospheric tur-
where γ r;d
η2r;d I2r;d ∕σ 2r;d represents the instantaneous SNR bulence in the FSO link in Case A and the unified effect of
of the R-D (FSO) link, and C is a constant [dependent on the turbulence and pointing error in the FSO link in Case B.
AF relay gain as C
1∕Gσ 2s;r 2 ]. The average electrical
SNR is given by γ̄ r;d
η2r;d EI2r;d ∕σ 2r;d
η2r;d ∕σ 2r;d. The aver- A. Under Atmospheric Turbulence
age SNR γ̄ ar;d of the R-D link can be easily computed as
γ̄ ar;d
a1b1
ab γ̄ r;d [16]. When the R-D link undergoes When the RF link experiences Nakagami-m fading and
only the atmospheric turbulence, the PDF of γ r;d can be the FSO link experiences Gamma–Gamma distributed tur-
written as bulence, the statistical characteristics are obtained as
0 s1 follows.
ab
ab ab
γ r;d
−1 r
2 4
@ γ r;d A 1) Cumulative Distribution Function: The CDF of the
f γr;d γ r;d 
K a−b 2 ab : (6)
ΓaΓbγ̄
ab
4 γ̄ r;d end-to-end SNR (γ z ) for the considered RF–FSO system
r;d
can be written as
The PDF given in Eq. (6) can be expressed in series form 
γ γ
as [10] F γ z γ
Pr s;r r;d ≤ γ ;
γ r;d  C
Z∞ 
∞ h
X i γ γ
f γ r;d γ
ζ k b; aγ 2 −1  ζ k a; bγ 2 −1 ;
bk ak
(7)
Pr s;r r;d ≤ γjγ r;d f γ r;d γ r;d dγ r;d ;
0 γ r;d  C
k
0 Z∞ 
γ r;d  Cγ
γ̄ bk
πpab
Pr γ s;r ≤ f γ r;d γ r;d dγ r;d : (9)
where ζk b; a
2 sinfa−bπgk!ΓaΓbΓb−ak1
r;d
: 0 γ r;d

Using the relation

B. Under the Combined Effect of Turbulence and
Pointing Error Z x
F X x
f X tdt; (10)
−∞
When both the atmospheric turbulence and the pointing
errors are considered, the PDF of γ r;d is expressed by and Eqs. (2) and (6) in Eq. (9), we obtain

r  Z
A 3;0 γ r;d  ξ2 ab
ab
2 ∞ ab
−1
f γ r;d γ
p G1;3 ab ; (8) F γ z γ
γ r;d
γ̄ r;d  ξ2 − 1; a − 1; b − 1
4
γ r;d ab
ΓmΓaΓbγ̄ r;d 4 0

2 p

s
r
where A
abξ ∕2 γ̄ r;d ΓaΓb, ξ
we ∕2σ s  is the ratio γ r;d  Cmγ γ
× γ m; K a−b 2 ab r;d dγ r;d ; (11)
between the equivalent beamwidth of the receiver and the γ̄ s;r γ r;d γ̄ r;d
pointing error displacement standard deviation at the
p R
receiver (v
π∕2r∕wb ), wb ∕r is the beamwidth normal- where γs; x
0x ts−1 e−t dt represents the lower incomplete
p
πerf v
ized by the radius of the receiver aperture, w2e
w2b 2verf v Gamma function. By applying the series form of the lower
m;n
[17], and Gp;q ·j is the Meijer-G function [18, Chapter 2, incomplete Gamma function
Section 2.24]. !
X xk
m−1
Although the model of Gamma–Gamma distributed γm; x
m − 1! 1 − e−x ; (12)
turbulence given in Eq. (6) has been extensively validated k
0
k!
through practical field experiments, the true characteri-
zation of modeling pointing error along with atmospheric the Meijer-G representations of the exponential function,
turbulence is a very difficult problem and the model and the modified Bessel function of second kind, given in [18]
given in Eq. (8) is a theoretical concept. It assumes that [Eqs. (8.4.3.2) and (8.4.23.1), respectively], in Eq. (11), and
the strength of turbulence does not change over the using Eq. (2.24.1.1) of [18], the CDF of γ z can be derived as

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Sanya Anees and Manav R. Bhatnagar VOL. 7, NO. 2/FEBRUARY 2015/J. OPT. COMMUN. NETW. 127

XX

 
m−1 k
−mγ  · Following the same procedure in Eq. (17) as used while

z1
F γ z γ
1 − A1 γ 4 l exp × G5;0
0;5 Wγ  p ; (13) solving the integral in Eq. (11), the CDF of γ z is expressed
k
0 l
0
γ̄ s;r 1
by
z1 z1 z1

where A1
k!C 4 ab 2 m 4

l
mab C
, W
16γ̄
2
, and p1
XX

 2 2 
z1 z
s;r γ̄ r;d
m−1 k
−mγ  ξ ξ 1
× G2;7 Wγ  2 ; 2 ;
l 1 l12 7;0
4
4πl!k−l!ΓaΓbΓk1γ̄ s;r 4
γ̄ r;d F γ z γ
1 − A2 γ exp
h i γ̄ s;r p2
z2 z2 2 −z2 −z2 2 −z1 k
0 l
0
4 ; 4 ; 4 ; 4 ; 4 − l  k , in which z1
a  b and
(18)
z2
a − b.
1 l1
z1 −3
A2
2 k!C Am l1
2 2
2) Probability Density Function: Differentiating Eq. (13) where and
2πl!k−l!Γk1γ̄ s;r2
with respect to γ and using Eq. (8.2.30) of [18], the PDF can h2 i
ξ −1 ξ2 a−1 a b−1 b
be obtained as p2
2 ; 2 ; 2 ; 2 ; 2 ; 2 ; − 12 − l  k .

X
m−1 X
k

z1 −mγ 2) Probability Density Function: On differentiating
f γz γ
A1 γ 4 l−1 exp
k
0 l
0
γ̄ s;r Eq. (13) using Eq. (8.2.2.30) of [18], the PDF can be ob-

  tained as
 − z1 − l
× G6;0 Wγ  4
XX

1;6  1 − z1 − l; p1 m−1 k
1 −mγ
4 f γz γ
A2 γ l−2 exp


  γ̄ s;r
X X mA1 z1
m−1 k
−mγ 5;0  · k
0 l
0
 γ 4 l exp G0;5 Wγ  : (14)
 2 2
 ξ2 ; ξ 21 ; −l − 12

γ̄ γ̄ p1 
k
0 l
0 s;r s;r
× G8;0
3;8 Wγ 
−l  12 ; p2
XX

 ξ2 ξ2 1 
3) Moment Generating Function: The MGF generally m−1 k
mA2 l1 −mγ 7;0  ;
defined in terms of the PDF is given by [19] [Eq. (5–96)]  γ exp
2 G2;7 Wγ  2 2 : (19)
γ̄ s;r γ̄ s;r p
k
0 l
0 2
Z ∞
Mγ s ≜ e−sγ f γ z γdγ: (15) 3) Moment Generating Function: Substituting Eq. (19)
−∞
into Eq. (15) and using Eq. (5.6.3.1) of [2], the MGF for
Substituting Eq. (14) into Eq. (15) and using Eq. (5.6.3.1) of the considered system with significant pointing error is
[20], the MGF for the considered system assuming negli- given by
gible pointing error can be derived as XX
m−1 k
−l−1
m 2

−z1 −l Mγ s
A2 s
XX
m−1 k
m 4 γ̄ s;r
Mγ s ≜ A1 s k
0 l
0
γ̄ s;r
 ξ2 ξ2 1 
k
0 l
0
8;1 W γ̄ s;r  −l  12 ; 2 ; 2 ; −l − 12

  × G4;8
m  sγ̄ s;r 
z1 z1
W γ̄ s;r  1 − 4 − l; − 4 − l −l  12 ; p2
× G6;1
2;6
m  sγ̄ s;r  1 − z41 − l; p1
−l−3
XX
m−1 k
mA2 m 2

XX
m−1 k
−z1 −l−1  s
mA1 m 4 γ̄ γ̄
 s k
0 l
0 s;r s;r
γ̄ s;r γ̄ s;r
 2 2 
k
0 l
0

 z1  7;1 W γ̄ s;r  −l − 12 ; ξ2 ; ξ 21
W γ̄ s;r  − 4 − l
 × G3;7 : (20)
× G5;1 : (16) m  sγ̄ s;r  p2
1;5
m  sγ̄ s;r  p1

IV. PERFORMANCE OF THE DUAL-HOP ASYMMETRIC

B. Under the Combined Effect of Turbulence and RF–FSO COOPERATIVE SYSTEM
Pointing Error
In this section, the finite power series mathematical ex-
When the RF link is characterized by the Nakagami-m pressions are derived for the outage probability, the BER,
fading and the FSO link is characterized by the Gamma– and the average capacity of the AF-based dual-hop mixed
Gamma distributed turbulence and pointing error, the RF–FSO systems under the subsequent cases.
statistical measures are obtained as follows.

1) Cumulative Distribution Function: Using Eqs. (2), (8), A. Under Atmospheric Turbulence
and (10) in Eq. (9), we get
Z

A ∞ −1 γ  Cmγ 1) Outage Probability: Outage probability is defined as
F γz
m; r;d
γ r;d2 γ the probability at which the end-to-end SNR, γ z , falls below
Γm 0 γ̄ s;r γ r;d

r  a predetermined threshold value γ th . The end-to-end out-
γ 
r;d  ξ2
× G3;0 ab dγ r;d : (17) age probability for the fixed-gain AF-based dual-hop RF–
1;3
γ̄ r;d  ξ2 − 1; a − 1; b − 1 FSO cooperative system can be derived by using Eq. (13) as

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128 J. OPT. COMMUN. NETW./VOL. 7, NO. 2/FEBRUARY 2015 Sanya Anees and Manav R. Bhatnagar

XX
−z1
Pout γ th 
F γz γ th  1 m−1 k
A1 qp m 4 −l−p
Peb
− q
2 k
0 l
0 2Γp γ̄ s;r
X
m−1 X
k

z1

1− A1 γ th
4 l

5;1 W γ̄ s;r  1 − 41 − l − p
z
× G1;5 : (25)
m  qγ̄ s;r 
k
0 l
0


  p1
−mγ th 5;0  ·
× exp G0;5 Wγ th  : (21)
γ̄ s;r p1
A special case is as follows. The BER of binary modula-
tion techniques for an AF-based dual-hop Rayleigh/
A special case is as follows. The Rayleigh distribution
Gamma–Gamma system can be obtained using Eq. (25) as
can be easily derived from Nakagami-m fading by substi-
tuting m
1 in Eq. (2). Thus the outage probability for an
−z1
 
AF-based dual-hop Rayleigh/Gamma–Gamma system us- 1 A01 qp 1 4 −p 5;1 W 0 γ̄ s;r  1 − z41 − p
Peb
− q G1;5 :
ing Eq. (21) is given by 2 2Γp γ̄ s;r 1  qγ̄ s;r  0
p1
(26)


 
z1
−γ th  ·
Pout γ th 
1 − A01 γ th G5;0 0 
0;5 W γ th  p0
4
exp ; (22)
γ̄ s;r 1
In this scenario it is observed that Eq. (26) is similar to
Eq. (15) of [9], thus verifying the derived expression
z1 z1
2
in Eq. (25).
C 4 ab 2 ab C
where A01
z1 z1 , W 0
16γ̄ s;r γ̄ r;d
, and p01

4 γ̄ 4
4πΓaΓbγ̄ s;r Regarding M-PSK, the instantaneous BER of the
h i r;d
M-PSK modulation scheme can be written as [22]
z2 z2 2 −z2 −z2 2 −z1
4 ; 4 ; 4 ; 4 ; 4 . As expected, Eq. (22) is the same
as Eq. (16) of [12], thus verifying the derived expression  p
2 X
maxM∕4;1
in Eq. (21). Pep γ ≃ Q aj 2γ ; (27)
maxlog2 M; 2 j
1
2) Average BER: In this subsection, the BER of the
mixed RF–FSO system is derived for various binary modu- where Q⋅ is the Q-function, and aj
sin2j−1π
M . The aver-
lation techniques, M-ary quadrature amplitude modula- age BER is expressed as
tion (M-QAM), and M-ary phase shift keying (M-PSK)
under negligible pointing error. Z ∞
Z ∞
Regarding binary modulation techniques, using Eq. (12) Pe
Pe γf γ Z γdγ
− F γ Z γdPe γ: (28)
0 0
of [21], the average BER for the considered cooperative sys-
tem is expressed by
Solving the integral in Eq. (28) by substituting Eqs. (13)
Z and (27) into Eq. (28), the BER is given by
qp ∞
Peb
γ p−1 exp−qγF γ z γdγ; (23)
2Γp

X Z∞
0
maxM∕4;1
aj 2
Pep
p exp−aj γ
where p and q are the BER parameters describing various j
1 0 πγ maxlog2 M; 2
binary modulation techniques [21] given in Table I. Substi-
XX

 
m−1 k
−mγ 5;0 −
tuting Eq. (13) into Eq. (23), the BER can be written as G0;5 Wγ 
z1
× 1− A1 γ 4 l exp dγ:
γ̄ s;r p1
k
0 l
0
Z∞
qp (29)
Pe b
γ p−1 exp−qγ
2Γp 0

m−1
XX

  On opening the brackets and using Eq. (5.6.3.1) of [20] in
k
−mγ 5;0 −
G0;5 Wγ 
z1
× 1− A1 γ 4 l exp dγ: (24) Eq. (29), the BER for the mixed RF–FSO system employing
γ̄ s;r p1
k
0 l
0 an M-PSK constellation is derived as

Utilizing Eq. (5.6.3.1) of [20] in Eq. (24), the mathematical X

maxM∕4;1
1
expression for the BER of binary modulation techniques is Pep

given by j
1
maxlog2 M; 2

X m
maxM∕4;1 X
−1 X
k
aj A1
TABLE I − p
j
1 k
0 l
0
π maxlog 2 M; 2
BER PARAMETERS FOR DIFFERENT BINARY MODULATION

−z1 1
 
TECHNIQUES m 4 −l−2 5;1 W γ̄ s;r  12 − z41 − l
× a2j  G1;5 : (30)
Modulation Techniques p q γ̄ s;r m  a2j γ̄ s;r  p1
Coherent binary frequency shift keying (CBFSK) 0.5 0.5
Coherent binary phase shift keying (CBPSK) 0.5 1 A special case is as follows. The BER for an AF-based
Noncoherent binary frequency shift keying (NBFSK) 1 0.5 dual-hop Rayleigh/Gamma–Gamma system employing a
Differential binary phase shift keying (DBPSK) 1 1
M-PSK modulation scheme using Eq. (30) is given by

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Sanya Anees and Manav R. Bhatnagar VOL. 7, NO. 2/FEBRUARY 2015/J. OPT. COMMUN. NETW. 129

 
X
maxM∕4;1
1 π2 sin 2n−1
Pep
2N π
maxlog2 M; 2 vn
   ; (37a)
j
1 4N cos2 4π cos 2n−1 π
2N π  4
X
maxM∕4;1
aj A01
− p
j
1
π maxlog2 M; 2

−z1 −1
 
1 4 2 5;1 W 0 γ̄ s;r  12 − z41

 
× a2j  G1;5 : (31) π 2n − 1 π
γ̄ s;r 1  a2j γ̄ s;r  p1 0
sn
tan cos π  ; (37b)
4 2N 4

Regarding M-QAM, the instantaneous BER of the

M-QAM modulation scheme can be written as [22]

 
p 1  1; 1; 1; 1; 1; 1
X
M ∕2  p C1 sn 
−H 1;2 ; (37c)
3;2
sn  1; 1; 0; 1
Peq γ ≃ 4K1 Q bj γ ; (32)
j
1
q
and N is a positive integer. This approximation converges
where K1
log12 M 1 − p1
 and bj
2j − 1 M−13
.
M very fast, requiring many fewer terms to get an exact
Solving the integral in Eq. (28) by substituting Eqs. (13) match with the simulation result.
and (32) into Eq. (28), the BER is given by
After some algebra, the capacity can be written as
p


M ∕2 Z ∞
X
2 
2aj K1 −1 bj γ
Peq
p γ exp −
2  
0 2π 2 B X N
δ 
j
1
Cavg ≈ vn Ei−sn  M γ s ; (38)



  log 2 n
1 δs s → sn
XX
m−1 k
−mγ 5;0 −
G0;5 Wγ 
z1
× 1− A1 γ 4 l exp dγ:
γ̄ s;r p1
k
0 l
0
(33) where Eix is the exponential integral function. The
derivative of the MGF is given by
Upon opening the brackets and using Eq. (5.6.3.1) of [20]
in Eq. (33), the BER of an M-QAM modulation scheme for Z∞

 
the asymmetric RF–FSO system is obtained as δ XX
m−1 k
z1 m
Mγ s
− A1 γ 4 l exp − s  γ
δs 0 γ̄ s;r
p p r
k
0 l
0
X
M ∕2 X X
M ∕2 m−1 X
k
2 −z1 −l−1
 
2 bj m 4 2  − z1 − l XX
m−1 k
mA1
Peq
2K1 − bA K  × G6;0 Wγ  4
π j 1 1 2 γ̄ s;r 1;6  1 − 1 − l; p1 dγ −
z
γ̄ s;r
j
1 j
1 k
0 l
0 4 k
0 l
0

  Z∞


 
2W γ̄ s;r  12 − 41 − l −
z
z1 mγ 
× G5;1 : (34) × γ 4 l1 exp − s  G5;0
0;5 Wγ  p dγ:
1;5
2m  b2j γ̄ s;r  p1 0 γ̄ s;r 1

(39)
A special case is as follows. The BER of an M-QAM
modulation scheme for an AF-based dual-hop Rayleigh/
Gamma–Gamma system using Eq. (34) is given by Using Eq. (5.6.3.1) of [20] while solving the integral in
Eq. (39) we obtain
p p r
X
M ∕2 X
M ∕2
2 −z1 1
2 0
bj 1 4 −2
Pe q
2K1 − bA K 
−z1
j
1 j
1
π j 1 1 2 γ̄ s;r δ XX
m−1 k
m 4 −l−1

  Mγ s
− A1 s 
2W γ̄ s;r  2 − 41
1 z δs γ̄ s;r
× G5;1 : (35) k
0 l
0

 z 
1;5
2  b2j γ̄ s;r  p01 
W γ̄ s;r  − 41 − l; − z41 − l
× G6;1
m  sγ̄ s;r  1 − 41 − l; p1
2;6 z

XX
m−1 k
−z1
3) Average Channel Capacity: The average channel mA1 m 4 −l−2
− s
capacity can be expressed in terms of MGF as defined k
0 l
0
γ̄ s;r γ̄ s;r
in [23]
 z 
W γ̄ s;r  − 41 − l − 1
× G5;1 : (40)
 
1;5
m  sγ̄ s;r  p1
B X N
δ 
Cavg ≈ vn C1 sn  M γ s ; (36)
log 2 n
1 δs s → sn
Substituting Eq. (40) into Eq. (38), the capacity of the
where B is the bandwidth, dual-hop AF-based mixed RF–FSO system is obtained as

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130 J. OPT. COMMUN. NETW./VOL. 7, NO. 2/FEBRUARY 2015 Sanya Anees and Manav R. Bhatnagar

−z1
B X XX
N m−1 k
m 4 −l−1 Rayleigh/Gamma–Gamma system is equivalent to the ex-
Cavg
− vn Ei−sn A1 sn  pression derived in Eq. (44), thus verifying Eq. (43).
log 2 n
1 k
0 l
0 γ̄ s;r

 z1 z1 
W γ̄ s;r  − 4 − l; − 4 − l 2) Average BER: In this subsection, the BER of the con-
× G6;1
2;6
m  sn γ̄ s;r  1 − z41 − l; p1 sidered asymmetric system is derived for various modula-

−z1 tion techniques considering significant pointing error.
B X XX
N m−1 k
mA1 m 4 −l−2
− vn Ei−sn  sn  Regarding binary modulation techniques, substituting
log 2 n
1 k
0 l
0 γ̄ s;r γ̄ s;r
Eq. (18) into Eq. (23), the BER for the considered co-

 z1 
W γ̄ s;r  − 4 − l − 1 operative system can be expressed by
× G5;1 : (41)
1;5
m  sn γ̄ s;r  p1 Z∞
qp
Pe
γ p−1 exp−qγ
A special case is as follows. The average capacity for an 2Γp 0

XX

 2 2 
AF-based dual-hop Rayleigh/Gamma–Gamma system us- m−1 k
−mγ 7;0  ξ ξ 1
G2;7 Wγ  2 ; 2
1

ing Eq. (41) is given by × 1− A2 γ l2 exp dγ:

k
0 l
0
γ̄ s;r p2

−z1
B X N
1 4 −1 (45)
Cavg
− vn Ei−sn A01 sn 
log 2 n
1 γ̄ s;r

  Utilizing Eq. (7.813.1) of [24] in Eq. (45), the exact math-
W 0 γ̄ s;r  − z41 ; − z41
× G6;1 ematical expression for the BER is given by
1  sn γ̄ s;r  1 − 41 ; p01
2;6 z

−z1
B X N
A01 1 4 −2 XX
 1
− v Ei−sn  s  1 m−1 k
A2 qp m −l−p−2
log 2 n
1 n γ̄ s;r n γ̄ s;r Pe
− q
 2 k
0 l
0 2Γp γ̄ s;r


W 0 γ̄ s;r  − z41 − 1
 
× G5;1 : (42) W γ̄ s;r  1 − l − p; ξ2 ; ξ2 1
1;5
1  sn γ̄ s;r  p1 0
× G7;1 2 2 2 : (46)
3;7
m  qγ̄ s;r  p2

B. Under the Combined Effect of Turbulence and A special case is as follows. The BER of binary modula-
Pointing Error tion schemes for an AF-based dual-hop Rayleigh/Gamma–
Gamma system using Eq. (46) is derived as

1) Outage Probability: For an AF-based dual-hop RF–
 1

1 A02 qp 1 −p−2
FSO system under the combined influence of fading, Pe
− q
2 2Γp γ̄ s;r
turbulence, and pointing errors, the end-to-end outage
 
probability can be obtained using Eq. (18) as 7;1 W γ̄ s;r  1 − p; ξ2 ; ξ2 1
0
× G3;7 2 2 2 : (47)
1  qγ̄ s;r  p02
Pout γ th 
F γz γ th 
XX
m−1 k Similarly to the comparison made in Eq. (44), it is observed
l1

1− A2 γ th 2 that after using Eq. (8.2.2.9) of [18] in Eq. (14) of [9], the
k
0 l
0 expression obtained for the BER of the considered system


 ξ2 ξ2 1  is equivalent to the expression derived in Eq. (47), thus
−mγ th 2; 2
× exp G7;0 Wγ 
th  : (43) verifying Eq. (46).
2;7
γ̄ s;r p 2
Regarding M-PSK, substituting Eqs. (18) and (27) into
Eq. (28), the BER of the M-PSK modulation technique
A special case is as follows. Using Eq. (43) the outage can be written as
probability for an AF-based dual-hop Rayleigh/Gamma–
Gamma system is given by
X Z ∞

maxM∕4;1
aj

Pep
p exp−a2j γ


 2 2  0 πγ maxlog2 M; 2
1 −γ th 7;0  ξ ξ 1 j
1
Pout γ th 
1 − A02 γ 2th exp G2;7 W 0 γ th  2 ; 0 2 ; (44)
X−1 X

 2 2 
γ̄ s;r p2 m k
−mγ 7;0  ξ ξ 1
G2;7 Wγ  2 ; 2
1
× 1− A2 γ l2 exp dγ:
k
0 l
0
γ̄ s;r p2

2z1 −3 C2 A
1
ξ2 −1 ξ2 a−1 a b−1 b 1 (48)
where A02
1 , and p02
2 ; 2 ; 2 ;2; 2 ;2;−2 .
2πγ̄ 2s;r

It is observed that by applying the Meijer-G transforma- On opening the brackets and using Eq. (5.6.3.1) of [20] in
tion given by Eq. (8.2.2.9) of [18] in Eq. (25) of [12], the Eq. (48), the BER for the considered RF–FSO system em-
expression obtained for the outage capacity of the ploying an M-PSK constellation is given by

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Sanya Anees and Manav R. Bhatnagar VOL. 7, NO. 2/FEBRUARY 2015/J. OPT. COMMUN. NETW. 131

XX Z∞

 
X
maxM∕4;1
1 δ m−1 k
1 m
Pep
Mγ s
− A2 γ 2l exp − s  γ
j
1
maxlog2 M; 2 δs k
0 l
0 0 γ̄ s;r

 ξ2 ξ2 1  X −1 X
X m−1
maxM∕4;1 XX  ; 1 m k
aj A2  2 2 ; −l − 2 dγ −
k mA2
− p × G8;0
3;8 Wγ  −l  1 ; p
π maxlog2 M; 2 2 2 k
0 l
0
γ̄ s;r
j
1 k
0 l
0

−l−1
  Z∞

 
 2 2 
 ξ ; ξ 1
m W γ̄ s;r  −l; ξ2 ; ξ2 1 3
γ 2l exp − s 
m
γ G7;0  2 2 dγ:
2;7 Wγ 
2 7;1 ×
× aj  G3;7 2 2 : (49) γ̄
γ̄ s;r m  a2j γ̄ s;r  p2 0 s;r p2
(54)
A special case is as follows. The BER under M-PSK for an
Using Eq. (5.6.3.1) of [20] in Eq. (54) we obtain
AF-based dual-hop Rayleigh/Gamma–Gamma system us-
ing Eq. (49) is derived as X
m−1 X k
−3
δ m 2 −l
Mγ s
− A2 s 
δs γ̄ s;r
X
maxM∕4;1
1 k
0 l
0
Pe p

 
maxlog2 M; 2 W γ̄ s;r  − 1 − l; ξ2 ; ξ2 1 ; − 1 − l
× G8;1 2 2 2 2
m  sγ̄ s;r 
j
1 4;8 1
2 − l; p2
X
maxM∕4;1
aj A02

− p X X mA2
m−1 k
m 2 −l
−5

π maxlog2 M; 2 − s
j
1 γ̄ s;r γ̄ s;r

−1
  k
0 l
0
1 W 0 γ̄ s;r  0; ξ2 ; ξ2 1
 
× a2j  G7;1 2 2 : (50) W γ̄ s;r  − 3 − l; ξ2 ; ξ2 1
γ̄ s;r 3;7
1  a2j γ̄ s;r  p02 × G7;1 2 2 2 : (55)
3;7
m  sγ̄ s;r  p2

Regarding M-QAM, solving the integral in Eq. (28) by Substituting Eq. (54) into Eq. (38), the capacity of a dual-
substituting Eqs. (18) and (32) into Eq. (28), the BER of hop AF-based mixed RF–FSO system is obtained as
the M-QAM modulation technique is given by
−3
B X XX
N m−1 k
m 2 −l
p r  C
− v Ei−s A s 
XM ∕2 Z ∞

2  avg
log 2 n
1 k
0 l
0 n n 2 n
γ̄ s;r
2 1 aj γ
Peq
bj K1 γ −2 exp −
 1 
j
1 0 π 2 ξ 2 ξ2 1
W γ̄ s;r  − 2 − l; 2 ; 2 ; − 2 − l 1
8;1
× G

XX

 2 2  4;8
m  sγ̄ s;r  1
 ξ ξ 1 2 − l; p2
m−1 k
−mγ 7;0
G2;7 Wγ  2 ; 2
1
× 1− A2 γ l2 exp dγ:
−5
k
0 l
0
γ̄ s;r p2 B X XX
N m−1 k
mA2 m 2 −l
− vn Ei−sn  sn 
(51) log 2 n
1 k
0 l
0 γ̄ s;r γ̄ s;r

 3 ξ 2 ξ2 1 

Upon opening the brackets and using Eq. (5.6.3.1) of [20] W γ̄ s;r  − 2 − l; 2 ; 2
× G7;1 : (56)
in Eq. (33), the BER for the asymmetric RF–FSO system
3;7
m  sγ̄ s;r  p2
employing an M-QAM constellation is obtained as
A special case is as follows. Using Eq. (56) the average
p p r
XM ∕2 X M ∕2 m X −1 X k
2 −l−1 capacity for an AF-based dual-hop Rayleigh/Gamma–
2 bj m
Peq
2K1 − bj A2 K1  Gamma system in this scenario is given by
j
1 j
1 k
0 l
0
π 2 γ̄ s;r

−3

 2 2
ξ ξ 1  B X N
0 s  1
2
2W γ̄  −l; ; C
− v Ei−s A
× G3;77;1 s;r  2 2
: (52) avg
log 2 n
1 n n 2 n
γ̄ s;r
2m  b2j γ̄ s;r  p2 


W γ̄ s;r  − 1 ; ;
0 ξ 2 ξ2 1
1
× G8;1 2 2 2 ;−2
A special case is as follows. The BER of M-QAM for an
4;8
1  sγ̄ s;r  1
2 ; p2
0

AF-based dual-hop Rayleigh/Gamma–Gamma system us-
−5

B X N
A 1 2
ing Eq. (52) is given by − vn Ei−sn  2 sn 
log 2 n
1 γ̄ s;r γ̄ s;r
p p r


 2 ξ2 1 
XM ∕2 X M ∕2
2 b2j 1
−1 W γ̄ s;r  − 3 ; ;
0 ξ
bj A02 K1 × G7;1 2 2 2 : (57)
Peq
2K1 −
π 2

γ̄
3;7
1  sγ̄ s;r  p02
j
1 j
1 s;r

 2 2 
2W 0 γ̄  ξ ξ 1
s;r  0; 2 ; 2
× G7;1 : (53)
3;7
2  bj γ̄ s;r 
2 p02 V. NUMERICAL RESULTS

In this section the numerical results for the outage prob-

C. Average Channel Capacity ability, the average BER, and the average capacity are dis-
cussed for the considered fixed-gain AF-based dual-hop
The derivative of the MGF in the case of significant asymmetric RF–FSO communication system. The RF link
pointing error can be written as experiences Nakagami-m fading, characterizing weak to

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132 J. OPT. COMMUN. NETW./VOL. 7, NO. 2/FEBRUARY 2015 Sanya Anees and Manav R. Bhatnagar
0
10
TABLE II
SYSTEM SETTINGSa m=1, a=3.99, b=1.7
Analytical
Parameter Value Simulated m=1, a=5.41, b=3.78

Diameter of receiver 20 cm −1
10

Ouatge Probability
FSO link distance 1 km
m=2, a=3.99, b=1.7, ξ=5.03
Transmit divergence at 1/e 1 mrad
Beamwidth (wb ) 100 cm m=2, a=3.99, b=1.7
Jitter angle 0.1 mrad m=2, a=5.41, b=3.78, ξ=5.03
−2
Jitter standard deviation (σ s ) 10 cm 10
aData from [25–27].
m=3, a=3.99, b=1.7
strong fading, and the FSO link experiences Gamma–
−3 m=3, a=5.41, b=3.78, ξ=5.03
Gamma turbulence, characterizing weak to strong turbu- 10
m=3, a=5.41, b=3.78
lence along with pointing errors. The system parameters
taken into consideration are given in Table II. These param- 0 5 10 15 20 25
eters are used in various practical terrestrial FSO commu- Average SNR per hop (dB)
nication systems [25–27]. Table III shows the atmospheric
conditions considered [3,15,28], where C2n ranges in orders Fig. 2. Outage probability versus average SNR per hop for differ-
of 10−15 and 10−14 m−2∕3 for moderate and strong turbu- ent values of fading and turbulence parameters with or without
lence, respectively. It is assumed that the value of the con- pointing errors, ξ
5.03.
stant C is fixed to 1.5. The average SNRs of both the links
are assumed to be equal. The series-based expressions of error becomes weaker. Also, the effect of fading in RF link
the outage probability, the BER, and the average channel on the outage probability of the system is more intense
capacity derived in terms of the Meijer-G function can be when the FSO link is under moderate turbulence as com-
easily evaluated in MATLAB using the “loops” and “evalin” pared to the scenario when the FSO link is under strong
functions. Obtaining expressions of the performance met- turbulence.
rics in terms of the Meijer-G function helps in lowering the In Fig. 3, the average BER versus the average SNR plots
complexity in the analytical results as the time taken to are analyzed for various modulation techniques, i.e.,
evaluate these analytical expressions is much less. For ex- CBPSK, NBPSK, CBFSK, DBFSK, Q-PSK, 8-PSK, 16-
ample, for m
3, a
3.99, b
1.7, and ξ
2.503, it re- PSK, 16-QAM, and 64-QAM, with fixed fading statistics
quires only 28.174 s, 12.359 s, 48.431 s, and 18.213 min and pointing error parameter, m
2, a
5.41, b
3.78,
for the simulation of outage probability, BER under and ξ
5.03. From Fig. 3, it can be observed that as ex-
CBFSK, BER under 16-QAM, and average channel capac- pected CBPSK outperforms the other modulation tech-
ity, respectively. niques. Interestingly, the BER performance of CBFSK is
Figure 2 presents the outage performance of the consid- identical to the BER performance of QPSK. It can also be
ered system for various fading and turbulence parameters, noticed that regarding the BER performance of the coherent
with (ξ
5.03) and without pointing error, and γ th is set to technique, CBFSK is better than its respective noncoherent
10 dB. It is seen that the stronger the effect of fading and
turbulence, the poorer is the outage performance of the sys-
0
tem. The degradation in the outage performance increases 10
64−QAM
with the unified effect of turbulence and the pointing error.
This can be explained by the fact that in the case of point- −1
16−PSK
10
ing errors, the total impairment of the FSO link is the prod-
16−QAM
uct of the impairments caused by the turbulence and the
Average Bit Error Rate

pointing errors. For example, at SNR
20 dB, for m
3, −2

8−PSK
10
a
5.41, and b
3.78, the outage probability is Pout

4.62 × 10−3 and it increases to 3.45 × 10−2 and 4.176 × 10−2 DBFSK

for m
2, a
3.99, and b
1.7 without and with pointing −3

10
QPSK

error, respectively. Under the scenario when there is strong

fading in the RF link, the effect of turbulence and pointing
−4 CBFSK
10
Analytical
NBPSK
TABLE III Simulation

ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONSa −5
10
CBPSK

0 5 10 15 20 25
Visibility C2nRange Turbulence
Average SNR per hop (dB)
Weather (km) (m−2∕3 ) σ 2l Parameters
Light fog 0.5 10−15 0.6 a
5.41, b
3.78
Fig. 3. Average BER versus average SNR per hop for different
Clear sky 10 10−14 2.0 a
3.99, b
1.70
modulation techniques and fixed fading and pointing error param-
a
Data from [3,15,28]. eters; m
2, a
5.41, b
3.78, and ξ
5.03.

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Sanya Anees and Manav R. Bhatnagar VOL. 7, NO. 2/FEBRUARY 2015/J. OPT. COMMUN. NETW. 133
0
10
σ /r=6
s
−1 m=2, a−3.99, b=1.7 σ /r=3
10 64−QAM s
σs/r=2
no p.e.
Average Bit Error Rate

m=3, a−3.99, b=1.7

Average Bit Error Rate

−1
10
−2
10
16−PSK
CBFSK

−3 m=2, a−5.41, b=3.78

10 −2
10

w /r=4
b
w /r=6
b
−4 m=3, a−5.41, b=3.78 CBPSK
10 no p.e.

−3
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 10
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
Average SNR per hop (dB)
Average SNR per hop (dB)

Fig. 4. Average BER versus average SNR per hop graph of QPSK
Fig. 5. Average BER versus average SNR per hop for different
for jitter, σ s ∕r
1, and different values of fading, turbulence
modulation techniques, different values of jitter σ s ∕r, but fixed fading
parameters, and beamwidth, wb ∕r.
parameters, m
3, a
3.99, b
1.7, and beamwidth, wb ∕r
10.

and 6, respectively. It can also be inferred from Fig. 5 that in

modulation technique, NBFSK, and the performance of 16-
QAM is better than the performance of 16-PSK. Thus the
proposed system’s performance satisfies all the expected
outcomes, verifying the proposed analysis.
Figure 4 presents the average BER performance of the
asymmetric RF–FSO system using the QPSK modulation
technique, for different values of fading statistics and beam-
width, wb ∕r, but fixed jitter value, σ s ∕r
1. From Fig. 4, it
can be concluded that the more severe are the effects of
fading and turbulence, the greater is the degradation in
the BER performance of the system. For example, at
SNR
20 dB, for m
3, a
5.41, and b
3.78, the BER
is Pe
5.39 × 10−5 and it increases up to Pe
1.15 × 10−3
for m
3, a
3.99, and b
1.7. Also it is observed that
the smaller the beamwidth, the smaller is the value of ξ re-
sulting in a stronger impact of pointing errors and a poorer
BER performance of the considered system. For example, at
SNR
20 dB, for m
3, a
3.99, b
1.7, and no pointing
the case of lower modulation schemes, i.e., CBFSK,
CBPSK, and so on, pointing errors degrade the BER
performance more severely as compared to higher-order
modulation techniques.
Figure 6 presents the average channel capacity versus
average SNR plots for different fading statistics and no
pointing error. It can be observed from Fig. 6 that the more
severe the fading conditions, the lesser is the capacity of
the considered system. For example, it can be seen from
Fig. 6 that at SNR
18 dB, in comparison with the aver-
age capacity for m
3, a
5.41, b
3.78, and no pointing
error, the capacity is reduced by 2.05% and 6.08% when
compared with the scenarios, where m
2, a
5.41,
and b
3.78, and m
2, a
3.99, b
1.7, respectively.
Interestingly it is observed that in the case of average
6.5

error, the BER is Pe
1.15 × 10−3 and it increases to 1.39 × 6

m=3, a=5.41, b=3.78
m=2, a=5.41, b=3.78
10−3 and 1.97 × 10−3 when wb ∕r
6 and 4, respectively. An m=3, a=3.99, b=1.7
Average Channel Capacity (b/s/Hz)

5.5 m=2, a=3.99, b=1.7

interesting observation is made here that the FSO link acts m=1, a=5.41, b=3.78
as the dominant link amongst both of them, as the BER 5 m=1, a=3.99, b=1.7
under the strong fading and moderate turbulence is less
than the BER under moderate fading and strong turbulence. 4.5

Also the effect of fading is significantly large when the FSO 4

link undergoes moderate turbulence as compared to the sce-
nario when the FSO link undergoes strong turbulence. 3.5

In Fig. 5, the average BER versus average SNR plots are 3

analyzed under different modulation techniques, different
2.5
values of jitter (σ s ∕r), and fixed fading parameters, m
3,
a
3.99, b
1.7, and beamwidth, wb ∕r
10. From Fig. 5, 2
it can be noticed that the larger the value of jitter, the 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18
smaller is the value of ξ resulting in a stronger effect of Average SNR per hop (dB)
pointing errors and a higher average BER. For example, at
SNR
20 dB for the 16-PSK modulation scheme and no Fig. 6. Average capacity versus average SNR per hop for different
pointing error scenario, Pe
1.52 × 10−2 and it increases fading and the turbulence parameters and no pointing error
to 1.72 × 10−2 , 2.142 × 10−2 , and 9.40 × 10−2 for jitter
2, 3, present in the FSO link.

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134 J. OPT. COMMUN. NETW./VOL. 7, NO. 2/FEBRUARY 2015
7
Analytical
Simulated
6.5
Average Channel Capacity (b/s/Hz)
6
5.5
5 tions,” IEEE Commun. Mag., vol. 42, no. 5, pp. S2–S7,
4.5
4 space optical communication links in the presence of atmos-
3.5
3 [4] A. Bekkali, C. B. Naila, K. Kazaura, K. Wakamori, and M.
2.5
10 12 14
Average SNR per hop (dB)
Fig. 7. Average capacity versus average SNR per hop for different
values of fading parameter, turbulence parameters, jitter, and
beamwidth.
capacity of the considered system, the RF link is the dom-
inant link amongst both of them.
In Fig. 7, the average channel capacity versus average
SNR graph is plotted for different values of fading
statistics, beamwidth, and jitter. It can be observed that
for high values of jitter or smaller values of beamwidth,
i.e., under a strong effect of the pointing error (for smaller
values of ξ), the capacity of the considered system is highly
degraded. For example at SNR
20 dB, for m
2,
a
5.41, and b
3.78, in comparison with the no pointing
error scenario, the capacity degrades by 1.8%, 3.1%, and
4.9% for the jitter values of 2, 3, and 6, respectively.
It can be observed from Figs. 2, 3, and 7 that the simu-
lation results for the outage probability, the BER, and the
average capacity of the dual-hop mixed RF–FSO system
match well with the analytical results. Also it requires only
150 terms in the case of no pointing error and 160 terms in
the case of significant pointing errors, for the analytical re-
sults of the capacity of the considered system to match with
the simulated capacity.
VI. CONCLUSIONS
In this paper, power series-based mathematical ex-
pressions have been derived for the CDF, PDF, and
the MGF of the equivalent SNR of an AF-based mixed
RF–FSO cooperative system. Using these, the outage
probability, the BER, and the average capacity for the
considered system have been obtained. In addition spe-
cial cases have been presented where the mathematical
expressions are derived for the performance metrics
and capacity of the AF-based mixed RF–FSO system
considering the RF link to be Rayleigh distributed.
Furthermore, the effect of fading, turbulence, jitter,
beamwidth, and pointing error has been investigated
on the performance metrics of the Nakagami Gamma–
Gamma asymmetric link.
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Sanya Anees and Manav R. Bhatnagar
m=2, a=5.41, b=3.78
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VOL. 7, NO. 2/FEBRUARY 2015/J. OPT. COMMUN. NETW. 135
Sanya Anees (S’13) received the B.Tech.
(Honors) degree in electronics and commu-
nication engineering from Rajiv Gandhi
Technical University, M.P., India, in 2010,
and the M.Sc. degree (W/D) in communica-
tion engineering from the School of Electri-
cal and Electronic Engineering, University
of Manchester, U.K., in 2011. She is cur-
rently pursuing a Ph.D. from the Indian
Institute of Technology, Delhi, India. Her re-
search interests include free-space optical
communications, MIMO systems, wireless communications, and
cooperative communications.
Manav R. Bhatnagar (M’04, SM’13) re-
ceived a Ph.D. from the Department of Infor-
matics, University of Oslo, Norway, in 2008,
and an M.Tech. degree in communications
engineering from the Indian Institute of
Technology Delhi, New Delhi, India, in 2005.
He worked as a postdoctoral research fellow
at UNIK, University Graduate Center,
Kjeller, Norway, from 2008 to 2009. His re-
search interests include signal processing
for MIMO systems, cooperative communica-
tions, noncoherent communication systems, distributed signal
processing for cooperative networks, multi-user communications,
ultrawideband-based communications, free-space optical commu-
nications, cognitive radio networks, and software-defined radio.
Currently, he is working as an Associate Professor in the De-
partment of Electrical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology
Delhi, New Delhi, India. He has held visiting appointments with
the Wireless Research Group at the Indian Institute of Technology
Delhi, India; the SPINCOM Group of the University of Minnesota,
Minneapolis, MN, USA; the Alcatel-Lucent Chair at SUPÉLEC in
France; the ECE Department of the Indian Institute of Science at
Bangalore in India; UNIK, University Graduate Center of the Uni-
versity of Oslo, Norway; the Department of Communications and
Networking, Aalto University, Espoo, Finland; and INRIA/IRISA
Lab, University of Rennes, Lannion, France.
He served as an Editor for IEEE Transactions on Wireless Com-
munications during 2011–2014. Dr. Bhatnagar was selected as an
Exemplary Reviewer of IEEE Communications Letters for the
years 2010 and 2012.