Maximally improper interference in underlay cognitive radio networks

Abstract

It is well-known that the use of improper signaling schemes can be beneficial in interference-limited networks. Here we consider an underlay cognitive radio scenario, where a multi-antenna primary user is protected by an interference temperature constraint that ensures a prescribed rate requirement. We study how the interference temperature threshold changes when the interference is constrained to be maximally improper. Since the spatial structure of the impropriety is an additional degree of freedom, we provide the maximum value of the interference threshold that ensures the rate requirement. We illustrate the potential payoffs of improper signaling with some numerical examples, which show that a secondary user can significantly improve its achievable rate with respect to the proper signaling case.