Common control channel model on MAC protocols in cognitive radio networks

In order to achieve dynamic spectrum access in cognitive radio networks, many MAC protocols are proposed to split the shared spectrum into a common control channel and several data channels. The common control channel is used to negotiate data channels and control their access; however, it is confronted with the performance bottleneck. In this paper, an analytical framework is presented to solve this problem. Based on our model, a new definition called common control channel threshold is introduced to evaluate the throughput of the MAC protocols. Experimental results indicate that the proposed scheme is effective and practical.