This paper focuses on the parameterization of the multipath propagation model (MPM) for indoor broadband power line communications (PLC), which up to now has been established in an heuristic way. The MPM model was initially proposed in the PLC context for outdoor channels in the band up to 20 MHz, but its number of parameters becomes extremely large when used to model indoor channel frequency responses (CFR), which are much more frequency-selective than outdoor ones, and the band is extended to 80 MHz. This work proposes a fitting procedure that addresses this problem. It allows determining the model parameters that yield the best fit to each channel of a large database of single-input single-output (SISO) experimental measurements acquired in typical home premises of different European countries. Then, the statistics of the MPM parameters are analyzed. The study unveils the relation between the model parameters and the main characteristics of the actual CFR like the frequency selectivity and the average attenuation. It also estimates the probability density function (PDF) of each parameter and proposes a fitting distribution for each of them. Moreover, the relationship among the main parameters of the model, as well as their impact on the performance of PLC communication systems are also explored. Provided results can be helpful for the development of MPM-based models for indoor broadband PLC.

This paper proposes a synthetic statistical top-down MIMO power line communications channel model based on a pure phenomenological approach. The basic idea consists of directly synthesizing the experimental channel statistical properties to obtain an extremely compact model that requires a small set of parameters. The model is derived from the analysis of the in-home 2 × 3 MIMO PLC channel data set obtained by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute specialist task force 410 measurement campaign in the band 1.8-100 MHz. The challenge of modeling the channel statistical correlation, exhibited among the frequencies and between the MIMO modes, in compact form is tackled and it is shown that a small set of parameters can be used to reconstruct such a correlation behavior. The model is validated and compared with the measured channels, showing a good agreement in terms of average channel gain, root-mean-square delay spread, coherence bandwidth, and channel capacity distribution.

In recent decades, power line communication (PLC) has attracted considerable attention from the research community and industry, as well as from regulatory and standardization bodies. In this paper, we provide an overview of both narrowband and broadband systems, covering potential applications, regulatory and standardization efforts, and recent research advancements in channel characterization, physical layer performance, medium access, and higher layer specifications and evaluations. We also identify the areas of current and further study that will enable the continued success of PLC technology.

The authors consider the secure transmission of information over power line communication (PLC) networks. The focus is on the secrecy guaranteed at the physical layer, named physical layer security (PLS). Although PLS has been deeply investigated for the wireless case, it is not the same for the PLC environment. Thus, starting from the knowledge in the wireless context, the authors extend the results to typical PLC scenarios. In particular, the PLC channel statistics is evaluated and a performance comparison among PLC and wireless channels is performed, in terms of secrecy rate distribution. For the PLC case, the secrecy rate distribution, under a total power constraint, is evaluated for both optimal and uniform power distributions in broadband channels. To provide experimental evidence, the authors consider channel measures obtained in an in‐home measurement campaign. The underlying network presents a tree topology, which introduces frequency and spatial correlation among channels, and suffers from the keyhole effect, generated by branches that depart from the same node. As shown by the numerical results, these effects can reduce the secrecy rate. Finally, the authors evaluate the secrecy rate region for the multi‐user broadcast channel considering both simulated channel realisations and experimental channel measures.

A statistical characterization of the in-home power line communication channel is performed from the study of a wide set of measured channels in the 1.8-100 MHz frequency band. The study provides new insights on (a) the relation between the line impedance and the channel frequency response (CFR), and (b) on the spatial relation between the channels that share either the transmitter or the receiver outlet. Furthermore, it confirms the validity of some results presented in the literature that are limited to the 30 MHz band. The study comprises the analysis of the average channel gain, the root-mean-square delay spread and the coherence bandwidth, as well as the relation between such quantities and the phase of the CFR. Closed-form expressions are provided to model the quantities and their relations. Finally, the coverage, i.e., the relation between the maximum achievable rate and the distance, as well as the achievable rate gain offered by the use of the frequency band up to 300 MHz, are studied.