Improving Spectrum Sensing and Reporting via Multi-Antenna in Cognitive Radio Networks

Spectrum sensing is a vital functionality of cognitive radio network to identify an available spectrum for secondary users to enhance spectrum utilization and to avoid harmful interference to licensed users. However, the performance of spectrum sensing is highly degraded due to fading and hidden terminal issues. Recent development in multiantenna techniques provides a new dimension to spectrum sensing. In this paper, we propose a multi-antenna based signal detection scheme in multi-band systems. We consider an ordered sequential data fusion scheme i.e., Dempster-Shafer (D-S) evidence theory, which increases system reliability. Also, an ordered sequential reporting mechanism is proposed for multiantenna based systems to enhance the system performance by reducing reporting time duration. The effectiveness of the proposed scheme is demonstrated through simulations, compared with existing schemes.