Interference and throughput analysis of uplink user-assisted relaying in cellular networks

Relay-aided cooperative communication is a critical component of next generation cellular networks as it improves coverage and boosts system capacity. In this paper, we use stochastic geometry to study the performance of partial decode-and-forward (PDF) relaying through another idle user in uplink cellular communication. We analytically derive the average inter-cell interference power caused by system-wide deployment of this PDF relaying. This interference analysis provides the basis for quantitatively evaluating performance impacts of user-assisted relaying in cellular networks. We show that user-assisted relaying can significantly improve per-user transmission rate despite of increased inter-cell interference. This throughput gain further increases with higher idle-user density.