Symmetry/Asymmetry in Wireless Communication and Sensors

A special issue of Symmetry (ISSN 2073-8994). This special issue belongs to the section "Computer".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 June 2026 | Viewed by 805

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Department of Embedded Systems, ENSIAS, Mohammed V University in Rabat, Rabat, Morocco
Interests: performance analysis and design of wireless communication systems

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Recent wireless communication and sensor systems are increasingly affected by symmetry in regard to their network topology, channel properties, energy profiles, traffic patterns, and device capabilities. This Special Issue examines theoretical, algorithmic, and practical consequences of symmetry and asymmetry in IoT, 6G, UAV networks, energy harvesting systems, and intelligent sensors.

Asymmetry reflects real-world restrictions and adds complex but new optimization possibilities, whereas symmetry simplifies and strengthens design. For next-generation wireless systems, understanding how symmetry and asymmetry impact network dependability, security, resource allocation, and performance is crucial.

This Special Issue encourages original research, reviews, and application-driven studies on modeling, measuring, and exploiting symmetry/asymmetry in wireless and sensor technologies.

Topics of Interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

Symmetry/asymmetry in channel and signal models:

  • Symmetric vs. asymmetric fading channels;
  • Asymmetric channel state information (perfect/imperfect at Tx/Rx);
  • Symmetry in MIMO or RIS-assisted systems;
  • Impact of asymmetric pointing errors in THz/FSO systems.

Hardware and device-level asymmetry:

  • Asymmetric transceiver design (IQ imbalance, PA nonlinearity, antenna diversity);
  • Sensor heterogeneity in wireless sensor networks (WSNs);
  • Power and computational asymmetry in edge/cloud/fog networks;
  • Design for Systems with Residual Hardware Impairments.

Traffic and communication patterns:

  • Uplink/downlink asymmetry in IoT and smart sensing;
  • Traffic symmetry in multi-access or relay-based communication;
  • Asymmetric communication in UAV and satellite systems.

Energy and resource asymmetry:

  • Symmetric vs. asymmetric energy harvesting and storage;
  • Load balancing and energy-efficient routing under asymmetric battery constraints;
  • Unequal energy consumption in mobile and static nodes.

Machine learning and optimization in asymmetric networks:

  • Federated learning over asymmetric wireless and sensor networks;
  • Machine learning for communication over asymmetric channels;
  • Optimal stopping theory for decision-making under asymmetric information;
  • Reinforcement and distributed learning in heterogeneous IoT environments.

Security and privacy under asymmetry:

  • Physical layer security with asymmetric information (CSI, SNR);
  • Covert communication and eavesdropping with asymmetric capabilities;
  • Trust and reputation asymmetry in collaborative sensor environments.

Algorithmic and network-level asymmetry:

  • Asymmetric cooperative communication protocols;
  • Scheduling and MAC layer designs under asymmetric link conditions;
  • Learning-based optimization in asymmetric environments (e.g., federated learning).

Applications: Symmetry/asymmetry-aware design in

  • 6G networks;
  • Smart cities and industrial IoT;
  • Body area and vehicular sensor networks;
  • Environmental and agricultural sensing.

Prof. Dr. Faissal El Bouanani
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Symmetry is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

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Keywords

  • wireless communication
  • wireless sensor
  • channel and signal models
  • traffic and communication patterns
  • energy profiles
  • machine learning
  • optimization
  • device capabilities
  • network topology
  • intelligent sensors

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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30 pages, 496 KB  
Article
Stochastic Characterization of MAC-Level Reliability and Reassociation Dynamics in IEEE 802.15.4 Networks for Smart Grid Applications
by Carolina Del-Valle-Soto, José A. Del-Puerto-Flores, Ramiro Velázquez, Juan Sebastián Botero-Valencia, Leonardo J. Valdivia, José Varela-Aldás and Paolo Visconti
Symmetry 2026, 18(4), 653; https://doi.org/10.3390/sym18040653 - 14 Apr 2026
Viewed by 389
Abstract
Wireless communication networks based on IEEE 802.15.4 and ZigBee PRO constitute a critical component of smart grid infrastructures, where reliability and availability requirements exceed those typically assumed in low-power wireless deployments. Despite extensive analytical modeling, most existing studies rely on independence assumptions for [...] Read more.
Wireless communication networks based on IEEE 802.15.4 and ZigBee PRO constitute a critical component of smart grid infrastructures, where reliability and availability requirements exceed those typically assumed in low-power wireless deployments. Despite extensive analytical modeling, most existing studies rely on independence assumptions for packet errors and simplified abstractions of reassociation dynamics. This work presents stochastic reliability characterization grounded on real MAC-layer traffic capture from an operational IEEE 802.15.4/ZigBee PRO network. The methodology combines statistical hypothesis testing, first-order Markov modeling, spectral-gap analysis, large-deviation theory, renewal processes, and survival analysis of realignment intervals. Empirical results reject the hypothesis of independent frame errors and demonstrate significant temporal dependence with geometric mixing behavior. The estimated transition structure reveals burst-error persistence, inflating long-run variance relative to memoryless models. Furthermore, coordinator realignment intervals deviate from exponential behavior, exhibiting non-constant event rates consistent with regenerative dynamics. These findings indicate that effective communication reliability is governed not only by average frame error probability but also by dependence structure and regeneration mechanisms. The proposed probabilistic framework provides a rigorous and reproducible methodology for dependence-aware reliability assessment in smart grid communication systems. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Symmetry/Asymmetry in Wireless Communication and Sensors)
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