An Interference Minimization Game Theoretic Subcarrier Allocation Algorithm for OFDMA-Based Distributed Systems

In this paper, we consider a scenario where distributed users in an OFDM-based system share the spectrum for transmission. Each network user (player) comprises a pair of transmit and receive nodes and will be allocated a given number of subcarriers. We propose a utility function that aims at efficiently allocating subcarriers to all players by minimizing the amount of interference generated. We first show that for the utility function used in the subcarrier assignment problem, it is possible to find a network potential function for the game. This guarantees the existence of at least one pure Nash equilibrium if each player is assigned with a predetermined number of subcarriers for transmission. Hence, convergence to Nash equilibrium can be achieved by iteratively playing the best-response game (also known as myopic game) among the players. Our simulation results show that distributing power over a number of subcarriers can achieve better per user capacity compared to the case where transmission is made through only a single subcarrier.