On the performance of power-sensing RIS-SM: Effects of improper Gaussian noise and Nakagami-m fading channel

Abstract

The innovative idea of data transmission through a reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) is a promising and exciting solution to the ever-present problems in wireless communications, such as energy consumption and hardware cost. The soft-controlled dynamic shaping of the electro-magnetic waves, which enables utilizing the randomness of the propagation medium to achieve more efficacious wireless channels, makes RIS a key enabler of 6G technology. Lately, space modulation techniques (SMTs) have often been discussed within the realm of the RIS-aided technologies due to their unique transmission characteristics. However, RIS-SMTs require more generalized and in-depth investigations to fully understand their potential in future generations. Accordingly, in this study, a recently proposed RIS-based SMT is generalized to inherently increase the spectral efficiency by utilizing spatial modulation (SM) procedure instead of space shift keying (SSK). The novel system called power-sensing RIS-SM is analyzed in the presence of improper Gaussian noise (IGN) to discover system behavior in the case of being corrupted by an improper interfering signal over Nakagami-m channels, which adapt closely to the most of measured fading channels. The success of the proposed RIS-aided SMT is assessed in terms of the average bit error rate (ABER), which is both calculated by analytical derivations and verified by computer simulations. © 2024 Elsevier Inc.