Quantum-Assisted Adaptive Beamforming in UASs Network: Enhancing Airborne Communication via Collaborative UASs for NextG IoT

Abstract

This paper introduces a novel quantum-based method for dynamic beamforming and re-forming in Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UASs), specifically addressing the critical challenges posed by the unavoidable hovering characteristics of UAVs. Hovering creates significant beam path distortions, impacting the reliability and quality of distributed beamforming in airborne networks. To overcome these challenges, our Quantum Search for UAS Beamforming (QSUB) employs quantum superposition, entanglement, and amplitude amplification. It adaptively reconfigures beams, enhancing beam quality and maintaining robust communication links in the face of rapid UAS state changes due to hovering. Furthermore, we propose an optimized framework, Quantum-Position-Locked Loop (Q-P-LL), that is based on the principle of the Nelder-Mead optimization method for adaptive search to reduce prediction error and improve resilience against angle-of-arrival estimation errors, crucial under dynamic hovering conditions. We also demonstrate the scalability of the system performance and computation complexity by comparing various numbers of active UASs. Importantly, QSUB and Q-P-LL can be applied to both classical and quantum computing architectures. Comparative analyses with conventional Maximum Ratio Transmission (MRT) schemes demonstrate the superior performance and scalability of our quantum approaches, marking significant advancements in the next-generation Internet of Things (IoT) applications requiring reliable airborne communication networks.