Fair resource allocation for hybrid FSO/RF network

Abstract

Various wireless networks have emerged to meet the growing demand for broadband wireless services. However, wireless services are fundamentally limited in bandwidth because of the scarcity of RF spectral resources. One alternative resource is the optical spectrum that can provide Gbps connectivity for little cost and no interference. This paper addresses the design of joint free space optical (FSO) system and RF system in hybrid FSO/RF networks. In such networks, existing resources of the RF network can be reallocated due to the added resources available from the FSO network. We formulate and solve this resource allocation problem subject to fairness constraints. The results show that adding optical transceivers to nodes in RF mesh networks can significantly enhance the total network capacity.