Analysis of LTE-A heterogeneous networks with SIR-based cell association and stochastic geometry

This paper provides an analytical framework to characterize the performance of heterogeneous networks (HetNets), where the positions of base stations and users are modeled by spatial Poisson point processes (stochastic geometry). We have been able to formally derive outage probability, rate coverage probability, and mean user bit-rate when a frequency reuse of K and a novel prioritized SIR-based cell association scheme are applied. A simulation approach has been adopted in order to validate our analytical model; theoretical results are in good agreement with simulation ones. The results obtained highlight that the adopted cell association technique allows very low outage probability and the fulfillment of certain bit-rate requirements by means of adequate selection of reuse factor and micro cell density. This analytical model can be adopted by network operators to gain insights on cell planning. Finally, the performance of our SIR-based cell association scheme has been validated through comparisons with other schemes in literature.