On Multicast Throughput in Multihop MIMO Networks With Interference Alignment

Interference alignment (IA) is widely regarded as a promising interference management technique for wireless networks and its potential is most profound in interference-intensive environments. This motivates us to study IA for multicast communications in multihop MIMO networks, which are rich in interference by nature. We develop a set of linear constraints that can characterize a feasible design space of IA for multicast communications. The set of linear constraints constitutes a simple mathematical model of IA that allows us to conduct cross-layer multicast throughput optimization in multihop MIMO networks, but without getting involved into the onerous signal design at the physical layer. Based on the mathematical model of IA, we formulate a multicast throughput maximization problem and develop an approximation solution that can achieve (1 - ε)-optimality. Simulation results show that the use of IA can significantly increase the multicast throughput in multihop MIMO networks and the throughput gain increases with the volume of multicast traffic and the number of antennas.