CSMA-Based Bandwidth Estimation for Cognitive Radio Sensor Networks

Given the highly variable physical layer characteristics in cognitive radio sensor networks, it is indispensable to estimate the near stable bandwidth for cognitive radio users for smooth operations of the higher layer protocols. Taking into account the dynamic spectrum access, this paper formulates the approximate bandwidth available to secondary users (SUs) for a given set of traffic channels operated under the exclusively available common control channel. Performance analysis reveals that dedicating a common control channel for SUs enhances their aggregated bandwidth approximately 5 times through the possibility of concurrent transmissions on different traffic channels.