Joint power and blocklength optimization for RIS-aided multiple-access downlink ultra-reliable low-latency communication

Ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLLC) has gained significant interest since it deals with short packet transmission adopted to reduce latency; however, this implies that the conventional Shannon capacity formula is not applicable, and the achievable data rate becomes a complex function of the decoding error probability and blocklength. This paper studies URLLC transmission using a time-division multiple access scheme with an arbitrary number of actuators utilising a reconfigurable intelligent surface. The authors optimisze the weighted sum rate of this system subject to reliability, total energy, and latency constraints. For the blocklength allocation in a scenario where each actuator is allocated equal power, a closed-form analytical solution is provided. Also, for the case of joint optimization of the blocklength and power of each actuator, an analytical solution is provided for the case of two actuators, while an iterative sequential quadratic programing method is adopted for the case of an arbitrary number of actuators. The proposed methodology provides a low-complexity, fast solution, which is more efficient than using exhaustive search techniques. The results show that in some cases, optimization of the blocklength provides a near-optimal solution at low complexity, while jointly optimising the blocklength and the power per actuator has an improved performance at the cost of additional complexity.