The effects of MAC protocols on ad hoc network communication

As mobile computing gains popularity, the need for ad hoc routing protocols will continue to grow. There have been numerous simulations comparing the performance of these protocols under varying conditions and constraints. One question that arises is whether the choice of MAC protocol affects the relative performance of the routing protocols being studied. This paper investigates the answer to that question by simulating the performance of three ad hoc routing protocols when run over different MAC protocols. It is determined that the choice of MAC layer protocol does, in fact, affect the relative performance of the routing protocols.