A Stackelberg Game Approach for Energy-Efficient Resource Allocation and Interference Coordination in Heterogeneous Networks

In this paper, we propose a game-theoretical approach for energy-efficient resource allocation and interference coordination in heterogeneous networks (Het Nets). Considering the joint interaction of cross-tier interference and energy consumption in a two-tier Het Net consisting of one central macro and N picos, we develop the system model and measure the energy efficiency (EE) by utility. Since global optimization of the Het Net EE is intractable and computationally expensive, we formulate the optimization problems for macro and picos respectively as a two-stage Stackelberg game. Then we employ a backward induction method to solve this game model and analyze the method complexity. Simulation results verify the performance of the proposed approach and it can be easily implemented in a distributed manner in practical Het Nets.