Terahertz Channel Model and Link Budget Analysis for Intrabody Nanoscale Communication

Nanosized devices operating inside the human body open up new prospects in the healthcare domain. Invivo wireless nanosensor networks (iWNSNs) will result in a plethora of applications ranging from intrabody health-monitoring to drug-delivery systems. With the development of miniature plasmonic signal sources, antennas, and detectors, wireless communications among intrabody nanodevices will expectedly be enabled at both the terahertz band (0.1-10 THz) as well as optical frequencies (400-750 THz). This result motivates the analysis of the phenomena affecting the propagation of electromagnetic signals inside the human body. In this paper, a rigorous channel model for intrabody communication in iWNSNs is developed. The total path loss is computed by taking into account the combined effect of the spreading of the propagating wave, molecular absorption from human tissues, as well as scattering from both small and large body particles. The analytical results are validated by means of electromagnetic wave propagation simulations. Moreover, this paper provides the first framework necessitated for conducting link budget analysis between nanodevices operating within the human body. This analysis is performed by taking into account the transmitter power, medium path loss, and receiver sensitivity, where both the THz and photonic devices are considered. The overall attenuation model of intrabody THz and optical frequency propagation facilitates the accurate design and practical deployment of iWNSNs.