Connection intervals in multi-scale infrastructure-augmented dynamic networks

Abstract We consider a hybrid spatial communication system in which mobile nodes can connect to static sinks in a bounded number of intermediate relaying hops. We describe the distribution of the connection intervals of a typical mobile node, i.e., the intervals of uninterrupted connection to the family of sinks. This is achieved in the limit of many hops, sparse sinks and growing time horizons. We identify three regimes reflecting various degrees of sink densities. Namely, (1) a regime of dense sinks, in which the limit is deterministic and given as an expectation with respect to percolation clusters, (2) a regime of sparse sinks, in which the limit depends on a random number of reachable sinks, and (3) an intermediate critical regime.