Multi-leader multi-follower game based power control for downlink heterogeneous networks

Heterogeneous networks (HetNets) are expected to be an integral component of expansion of 3G and emerging 4G network deployments. However, in order to achieve the quality-of-service (QoS) requirements of all the users, interference mitigation techniques need to be developed to manage the radio resources of macrocells and small cells. In this paper, we focus on the optimal power allocation for downlink HetNets. Specifically, we take into account the different deployment targets and service requirements of macrocell base stations (BSs) and small cells (corresponding to picocells and femtocells), and classify them into two categories according to their deployers, namely, operator deployed BSs (OBSs) and customer deployed BSs (CBSs). Then, the framework of Stackelberg game with multiple leaders and multiple followers is adopted to investigate the downlink power allocation problem. To obtain the Stackelberg equilibrium (SE) distributively, we develop the power updating rules for both OBSs and CBSs. Moreover, the implementations of the proposed game are discussed. At last, numerical results show the convergence of the proposed game and the uniqueness of the SE.