Sensing and transmission parameter determination for cognitive radio networks

Cognitive radio is one of the most promising solutions to spectrum-scarcity problem. In cognitive radio networks, the most important requirement is to avoid interference between the primary and secondary users. However, different primary users require different levels of protection. Moreover, the extent of interference that a primary user can tolerate may change over time. Therefore, a secondary should adapt its operating parameters according to a primary user´s changing requirements. In this paper, we propose a method that determines the optimal length of the sensing period and the data-transmission period. Given the primary user´s requirements, our method uses a stochastic model to derive two parameters that maximizes the secondary user´s throughput. By simulation, we show that our method is valid and optimal.