Performance analysis of multi-hop cooperative relay networks over generalized-K fading channels

In this paper, we consider an amplify-and-forward (AF) transmission based multi-hop cooperative relay network operating over generalized-K fading channels. The generalized-K fading channel is general enough to incorporate most of the composite multi-path fading and shadowing channels which are widely encountered in real-world environments. In this paper, novel closed-form expressions for the average symbol error rate and the outage capacity of multi-hop cooperative relay networks operating over generalized-K fading channels are presented. More specifically, we utilize the moment generating function (MGF) approach to derive the novel closed-form expressions for the cumulative distribution function (CDF) and the probability density function (PDF) of the end-to-end signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) at the destination. These statistical results are then applied to derive the novel closed-form expressions for the important performance metrics. Our analytical based numerical results are validated by simulations.