On the Optimal Power Allocation at the MAC Layer in the Asymptotic and in the Finite Blocklength

In this paper, we investigate the optimal power allocation at the MAC layer in both the asymptotic and the finite blocklength regimes in a two-user NOMA uplink network, under statistical delay constraints captured through the link-layer rate. Using the link-layer effective rate analytic expressions, we provide closed-form expressions of the optimal power coefficients in low and high signal-to-ratio (SNR) regimes. These are validated by an extensive set of simulations, showing that that the proposed power allocation policy optimizes the performance of NOMA compared to OMA at Layer 2.