skip to main content
US FlagAn official website of the United States government
dot gov icon
Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
https lock icon
Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( lock ) or https:// means you've safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.


Title: Comparative Analysis of Terahertz Propagation Under Dust Storm Conditions on Mars and Earth
Reliable Terahertz (THz) links are necessary for outdoor point-to-point communication with the exponential growth of wireless data traffic. This study presents a modified Monte Carlo simulation procedure for estimating THz link attenuation due to multiple scattering by charged dust particles on the THz beam propagation path. Scattering models are developed for beams through dust, based on Mie and Rayleigh approximations for corresponding frequencies on Earth (0.24 THz) and Mars (0.24 & 1.64 THz). The simulation results are compared, considering parameters such as the number of Monte-Carlo photon (MCP) packets, visibility, dust particle placement density along the beam, frequency, and distance between the transmitter and the receiver. Moreover, a channel capacity model was proposed, considering THz link attenuation due to dust storms, spreading loss, and molecular absorption loss for Earth and Mars outdoor environments. Simulation results for Earth show that the link attenuation increases with dust particle placement density, distance, and frequency, and attenuation decreases with visibility and MCP packets. On Mars, similar results are obtained for both frequencies, except that the attenuation varies around a constant value with the frequency increase. Moreover, attenuation is slightly higher at 0.24 THz frequency compared to 1.64 THz when more dust particles are present on the beam propagation path. Channel capacity is estimated for Earth and Mars environments considering time and distance-dependent scenarios. Time windows that show a sudden drop of dust particles along the beam provide opportunities to communicate with high reliability. Moreover, increasing the distance between the transmitter and receiver severely reduces the channel capacity measurement in strong dust storm conditions in both environments. Our study has found that weak dust storms have relatively little effect on Mars but much more significant effects on Earth.  more » « less
Award ID(s):
2030272
PAR ID:
10480972
Author(s) / Creator(s):
; ; ; ;
Publisher / Repository:
IEEE
Date Published:
Journal Name:
IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Signal Processing
Volume:
17
Issue:
4
ISSN:
1932-4553
Page Range / eLocation ID:
745 to 760
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
More Like this
  1. The THz band has attracted considerable attention for next-generation wireless communications due to the large amount of available bandwidth that may be key to meet the rapidly increasing data rate requirements. Before deploying a system in this band, a detailed wireless channel analysis is required as the basis for proper design and testing of system implementations. One of the most important deployment scenarios of this band is the outdoor microcellular environment, where the Transmitter (Tx) and the Receiver (Rx) have a significant height difference (typically ≥10 m). In this paper, we present double-directional (i.e., directionally resolved at both link ends) channel measurements in such a microcellular scenario encompassing street canyons and an open square. Measurements are done for a 1 GHz bandwidth between 145–146 GHz and an antenna beamwidth of 13 degree; distances between Tx and Rx are up to 85 m and the Tx is at a height of 11.5 m from the ground. The measurements are analyzed to estimate path loss, shadowing, delay spread, angular spread, and multipath component (MPC) power distribution. These results allow the development of more realistic and detailed THz system performance assessment. 
    more » « less
  2. Abstract One of the key distinctions between legacy low-frequency wireless systems and future THz wireless transmissions is that THz links will require high directionality, to overcome the large free-space path loss. Because of this directionality, optical phenomena become increasingly important as design considerations. A key example lies in the strong dependence of angular radiation patterns on the transmission frequency, which is manifested in many different situations including common diffraction patterns and the emission from leaky-wave apertures. As a result of this effect, the spectral bandwidth at a receiver is nonlinearly dependent on the receiver’s angular position and distance from the transmitter. In this work, we explore the implications of this type of effect by incorporating either a diffraction grating or a leaky wave antenna into a communication link. These general considerations will have significant implications for the robustness of data transmissions at high frequencies. 
    more » « less
  3. Abstract—Sub-Terahertz frequencies (frequencies above 100 GHz) have the potential to satisfy the unprecedented demand on data rate on the order of hundreds of Gbps for sixth-generation (6G) wireless communications and beyond. Accurate beam tracking and rapid beam selection are increasingly important since antenna arrays with more elements generate narrower beams to compensate for additional path loss within the first meter of propagation distance at sub-THz frequencies. Realistic channel models for above 100 GHz are needed, and should include spatial consistency to model the spatial and temporal channel evolution along the user trajectory. This paper introduces recent outdoor urban microcell (UMi) propagation measurements at 142 GHz along a 39 m  12 m rectangular route (102 m long), where each consecutive and adjacent receiver location is 3 m apart from each other. The measured power delay profiles and angular power spectrum at each receiver location are used to study spatial autocorrelation properties of various channel parameters such as shadow fading, delay spread, and angular spread along the track. Compared to the correlation distances reported in the 3GPP TR 38.901 for frequencies below 100 GHz, the measured correlation distance of shadow fading at 142 GHz (3.8 m) is much shorter than the 10-13 m as specified in 3GPP; the measured correlation distances of delay spread and angular spread at 142 GHz (both 12 m) are comparable to the 7-10 m as specified in 3GPP. This result may guide the development of a statistical spatially consistent channel model for frequencies above 100 GHz in the UMi street canyon environment. Index Terms—Terahertz; Spatial Consistency; Channel Measurement; Channel Modeling; 140 GHz; 142 GHz; 5G; 6G 
    more » « less
  4. Terahertz frequency bands will likely be used for the next-generation wireless communication systems to provide data rates of hundreds of Gbps or even Tbps because of the wide swaths of unused and unexplored spectrum. This paper presents two outdoor wideband measurement campaigns in downtown Brooklyn (urban microcell environment) in the sub-THz band of 140 GHz with TX-RX separation distance up to 100 m: i) terrestrial urban microcell measurement campaign, and ii) rooftop surrogate satellite and backhaul measurement campaign. Outdoor omnidirectional and directional path loss models for both line-of-sight and non-line-of-sight scenarios, as well as foliage loss (signal attenuation through foliage), are provided at 140 GHz for urban microcell environments. These measurements and models provide an understanding of both the outdoor terrestrial (e.g., 6G cellular and backhaul) and non-terrestrial (e.g., satellite and unmanned aerial vehicle communications) wireless channels, and prove the feasibility of using THz frequency bands for outdoor fixed and mobile cellular communications. This paper can be used for future outdoor wireless system design at frequencies above 100 GHz. 
    more » « less
  5. We consider the problem of covert communication over a state-dependent channel, for which the transmitter and the legitimate receiver have non-causal access to the channel state information. Covert communication with respect to an adversary, referred to as the “warden,” is one in which the distribution induced during communication at the channel output observed by the warden is identical to the output distribution conditioned on an inactive channel-input symbol. Covert communication involves fooling an adversary in part by a proliferation of codebooks; for reliable decoding at the legitimate receiver the codebook uncertainty is removed via a shared secret key that is unavailable to the warden. Unlike earlier work in state-dependent covert communication, we do not assume the availability of a shared key at the transmitter and legitimate receiver. Rather, a shared randomness is extracted at the transmitter and the receiver from the channel state, in a manner that keeps the shared randomness secret from the warden despite the influence of the channel state on the warden’s output. An inner bound on the covert capacity, in the absence of an externally provided secret key, is derived. 
    more » « less