Flexible Multipoint-to-Multipoint Routing Protocol in Ultra-Dense Nanonetworks

New applications in the field of radio networks require a high concentration of micro-machines (micro-robots, sensors/actuators) in a small space. Those devices are characterized by a high volatility and limited computing, storage and energy capabilities. Traditional routing approaches in ad hoc networks are unusable due to a significant amount of additional control traffic and a lack of robustness regarding the instability of the nodes. In this paper, we present an original, efficient and intuitive distributed routing protocol in ultra-dense terahertz networks, called Multipoint-to-Multipoint Routing Protocol (M2MRP), which is an emanation of electrostatic physics. A complexity analysis is performed to compare the M2MRP protocol with classical methods. Our study shows that the proposed protocol takes advantage of the nodes density to define a robust routing policy with a moderate additional traffic control. In addition, routing paths are adapted gradually and continuously according to the nodes location (mobility), availability (failures), congestion and energy level. Simulations show that the M2MRP routing protocol significantly outperforms the well-known routing protocols for dense networks both in terms of the number of exchanged messages and of success rate, making this routing protocol the most suitable for systems such as swarm micro-robots, programmable matter and ultra-dense sensor networks.