Analysis of Multi-Path Fading and the Doppler Effect for Reconfigurable-Intelligent-Surface-Assisted Wireless Networks

The randomness property of wireless channels restricts the improvement of their performance in wireless networks. As a novel solution for overcoming this, a reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) was introduced to reshape wireless physical environments. Initially, the multi-path and Doppler effects are discussed in a case in which a reflector was considered to reflect the incident signal for wireless communication. Subsequently, the results for the transmission signal were analyzed when a reflector was coated with an RIS. Specifically, the multi-path fading stemming from the movement of the mobile transmitter was eliminated or mitigated by utilizing an RIS. Meanwhile, the Doppler effect was also reduced to restrain the rapid fluctuations in the transmission signal by using a tunable RIS in real time. The simulation results demonstrate that the magnitude and spectrum of the received signal can be regulated by an RIS. The multi-path fading and Doppler effect can be effectively mitigated when the reflector is coated with an RIS in wireless networks.