Performance Evaluation of Hybrid ALOHA Mechanism based on Game Theory and Markov Chain Modeling

Abstract Hybrid ALOHA is a novel Medium Access Control (MAC) protocol that aims to enhance energy efficiency and packet delivery performance in wireless communication networks. This paper leverages mathematical models and analysis techniques from game theory and Markov chain modeling to investigate the performance of the hybrid ALOHA protocol under cooperative and non-cooperative scenarios. We first evaluate the protocol in a team problem, where all users act cooperatively to optimize the global utility of the system, and then in a non-cooperative game, where each user acts in their own self-interest and aims to access the channel by utilizing a higher retransmission probability, which they believe will optimize their own benefits. The use of Markov chain analysis enables the derivation of analytical expressions for the performance metrics of interest, as well as the determination of optimal and equilibrium retransmission probabilities. Additionally, the game theory approach is used to analyze the distribution of retransmission probabilities in the hybrid ALOHA protocol. Throughout an extensive numerical analysis, we show that the hybrid ALOHA protocol out-performs other ALOHA protocols in terms of all performance metrics, for both cooperative and non-cooperative scenarios. Additionally, we provide insights into the retransmission probabilities that optimize the performance metrics of interest for both scenarios.