On the block error rate performance of cooperative non-orthogonal multiple access short-packet communications with full-duplex relay and partial relay selection

In this paper, we mathematically investigate a downlink non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) system for short-packet communications (SPC) in which the near users are used as full-duplex (FD) relays to forward intended signals from the source to a far user. In addition, partial relay selection is employed to enhance the performance of the FD relays under the impact of imperfect interference cancellation. At the far user, selection combining (SC) or maximal ratio combining (MRC) is employed to combine the signals received from the source and the selected FD relay. The analytical expressions for the average block error rate (BLER) of two users over flat Rayleigh fading channels are derived. Furthermore, closed-form asymptotic expressions of the average BLERs at the near and far users in high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) regimes are obtained. The numerical results show that the analytical BLERs of the near user and far user closely match the simulation results.