Average Block Error Rate Analysis of IRS-Aided NOMA Short-Packet Communication Systems

In this paper, we investigate the average block error rate (BLER) of an intelligent reflecting surface (IRS) assisted non-orthogonal multiple-access (NOMA) in short-packet communications (SPC) over Nakagami-m fading channels. In the considered system, a base station wishes to communicate with two users by using NOMA and SPC techniques with the aid of an IRS. We derive not only the closed-form expressions for the average approximate BLER of users but also the average asymptotic BLER in a high transmit signal-to-noise ratio. Monte Carlo simulations are conducted to verify the derived analytical BLER expressions. The simulation results also unveil the impact of the number of IRS elements and blocklength on system BLER performance.