Dynamic access strategy selection in user deployed small cell networks

In this paper, the access strategy for spectrum-sharing based two-tier networks is investigated. By exploring the motivations of the home base station (HBS) and the macrocell user (MU), we propose a Stackelberg game based approach, which enables them to improve their performances by establishing direct links. The proposed approach copes with the distributed nature of the user-deployed small cell networks, and requires no inter-cell coordinations. Experimental results show that the proposed approach can guarantee the capacity gain of the small cells, while improving the energy efficiency of the macrocell users. Furthermore, by adjusting the objective function, the benefits of open access can be balanced between the capacity gain of small cells and the energy efficiency improvement of the MUs. Therefore it can be applied flexibly for various design purposes.