Resource-Efficient Low-Latency Modified Pietra-Ricci Index Detector for Spectrum Sensing in Cognitive Radio Networks

In this article, the modified Pietra-Ricci index detector (mPRIDe) is devised, and its field programmable gate array (FPGA) and application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) designs are reported. The mPRIDe attains lower implementation complexity with respect to its predecessor, without performance penalty. Moreover, the mPRIDe is blind, robust against time-varying noise and received signal powers, and exhibits the constant false alarm rate property. Two versions of the mPRIDe, namely mPRIDe v1 and mPRIDe v2, have been designed. The former privileges lower hardware complexity, whereas the latter aims lower latency, with both versions having a linear scalability with the number of sensors in cooperation. In comparison with the smallest area consumed by a state-of-the-art sensor, mPRIDe v1 and mPRIDe v2 consume 56.6% and 47.3% lower areas, respectively. The sensing times of the proposed sensors are 1.6 and 2.9 times better than the fastest sensing time of contemporary sensors. Moreover, the proposed designs deliver the lowest area-time-product and power-delay-product among state-of-the-art implementations. These metrics make both mPRIDe v1 and mPRIDe v2 the most hardware-efficient and power-efficient sensors reported in the literature.