Link-level performance of cooperative multi-hop relaying networks with MDS codes

We evaluate the link-level performance of cooperative multi-hop relaying networks with an maximum distance separable (MDS) code. The effect of the code on the link-level performance at the destination is investigated in terms of the outage probability and the spectral efficiency. Assuming a simple topology, we construct an absorbing Markov chain. Numerical results indicate that significant improvement can be achieved by incorporating an MDS code. MDS codes successfully facilitate recovery of the message block at a relaying node due to powerful error-correcting capability, so that it can reduce the outage probability. Furthermore, we evaluate the average number of hops where the message block can be delivered.