Link layer protocol analysis of future 10 Gb/s infrared links

In this study the authors discuss the performance of the link layer protocol of future 10 Gb/s short-range infrared links. The authors utilise analytical and simulation results to calculate the protocol efficiency both in a half-duplex mode of operation, which is currently standardised and a full-duplex mode that is considered for the future standard. The results show that the half-duplex protocol will require a significant extension on the window size, and optionally the frame size, in order to provide maximum efficiency for all possible physical layer arrangements. The full-duplex protocol, on the other hand, requires limited window and frame sizes and therefore has the potential to provide a significant gain in link layer metrics, such as latency and buffering.