arXiv subjects

Yaning Zhao

Publications and source records attributed to Yaning Zhao.

11 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Joint Identification and Sensing with Noisy Feedback: A Task-Oriented Communication Framework for 6G

Task-oriented communication is a key enabler of emerging 6G systems, where the objective is to support decisions and actions rather than full message reconstruction. From an information-theoretic perspective, identification (ID) codes provide a natural abstraction for this paradigm by enabling receivers to test whether a task-relevant message was sent, without decoding the entire message. Motivated by the strong impact of feedback on ID and by the growing interest in integrated communication and sensing, this paper studies joint identification and sensing (JIDAS) over state-dependent discrete memoryless channels with noisy strictly causal feedback. The transmitter conveys identification messages while simultaneously estimating the channel state from the feedback signal. For both deterministic and randomized coding schemes, we derive lower and upper bounds on the capacity--distortion function. The results quantify the fundamental limits of JIDAS under noisy feedback and recover existing noiseless-feedback characterizations as special cases.

cs.IT↗

arXiv2025

Secure Event-triggered MolecularvCommunication - Information Theoretic Perspective and Optimal Performance

Molecular Communication (MC) is an emerging field of research focused on understanding how cells in the human body communicate and exploring potential medical applications. In theoretical analysis, the goal is to investigate cellular communication mechanisms and develop nanomachine-assisted therapies to combat diseases. Since cells transmit information by releasing molecules at varying intensities, this process is commonly modeled using Poisson channels. In our study, we consider a discrete-time Poisson channel (DTPC). MC is often event-driven, making traditional Shannon communication an unsuitable performance metric. Instead, we adopt the identification framework introduced by Ahlswede and Dueck. In this approach, the receiver is only concerned with detecting whether a specific message of interest has been transmitted. Unlike Shannon transmission codes, the size of identification (ID) codes for a discrete memoryless channel (DMC) increases doubly exponentially with blocklength when using randomized encoding. This remarkable property makes the ID paradigm significantly more efficient than classical Shannon transmission in terms of energy consumption and hardware requirements. Another critical aspect of MC, influenced by the concept of the Internet of Bio-NanoThings, is security. In-body communication must be protected against potential eavesdroppers. To address this, we first analyze the DTPC for randomized identification (RI) and then extend our study to secure randomized identification (SRI). We derive capacity formulas for both RI and SRI, providing a comprehensive understanding of their performance and security implications.

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arXiv2025

A Hands-On Molecular Communication Testbed for Undergraduate Education

This work presents a hands-on molecular communication (MC) testbed developed for the undergraduate Communication Engineering lab course at the Institute for Communications Technology (IfN), TU~Braunschweig. The goal of the experiment is to provide students with an intuitive and reproducible introduction to MC concepts using a low-cost and accessible fluidic setup. The system employs a background water flow into which three dye colors are injected and symbols are detected by a multi-wavelength photosensor. A zero-forcing--based estimator is used to separate the spectral components and reliably identify the transmitted colors. The experiment is designed to be completed independently by students within a single laboratory session and requires only basic prior knowledge from introductory communication engineering courses. A detailed script accompanies the experiment, guiding students through channel characterization, color detection, pseudoinverse computation, and simple data transmission using on-off keying. In pilot trials, students successfully reproduced the entire communication chain and achieved stable data rates of up to 0.5~bit/s over a 15~cm channel. The proposed testbed demonstrates that fundamental principles of MC can be taught effectively using a compact and inexpensive experimental setup. The experiment will be integrated into an undergraduate lab course.

physics.ed-ph↗

arXiv2025

Identification for Molecular Communication Based on Diffusion Channel with Poisson Reception Process

Molecular communication (MC) enables information exchange at the nano- and microscale, with applications in areas like drug delivery and health monitoring. These event-driven scenarios often require alternatives to traditional transmission. Identification communication, introduced by Ahlswede and Dueck, offers such an approach, in which the receiver only determines whether a specific message was sent, suiting resource-limited and event-triggered systems. This paper combines MC with identification and proposes a one-dimensional (1D) diffusion-based model. Diffusion noise is modeled as a Poisson process, and a lower bound on channel capacity is derived. Simulations, microscopic, and with short-length deterministic codes, validate theoretical results, including the channel impulse response and error bounds. The findings support the design of practical MC systems, with potential use in testbed development.

cs.IT↗

arXiv2025

Identification over Poisson ISI Channels: Feedback and Molecular Applications

Molecular communication (MC) enables information transfer via molecules, making it ideal for biomedical applications where traditional methods fall short. In many such scenarios, identifying specific events is more critical than decoding full messages, motivating the use of deterministic identification (DI). This paper investigates DI over discrete-time Poisson channels (DTPCs) with inter-symbol interference (ISI), a realistic setting due to channel memory effects. We improve the known upper bound on DI capacity under power constraints from $\frac{3}{2} + \kappa$ to $\frac{1 + \kappa}{2}$. Additionally, we present the first results on deterministic identification with feedback (DIF) in this context, providing a constructive lower bound. These findings enhance the theoretical understanding of MC and support more efficient, feedback-driven biomedical systems.

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arXiv2025

Security and Privacy: Key Requirements for Molecular Communication in Medicine and Healthcare

Molecular communication (MC) is an emerging paradigm that enables data transmission through biochemical signals rather than traditional electromagnetic waves. This approach is particularly promising for environments where conventional wireless communication is impractical, such as within the human body. However, security and privacy pose significant challenges that must be addressed to ensure reliable communication. Moreover, MC is often event-triggered, making it logical to adopt goal-oriented communication strategies, similar to those used in message identification. This work explores secure identification strategies for MC, with a focus on the information-theoretic security of message identification over Poisson wiretap channels (DT-PWC).

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arXiv2024

An Achievable Rate-Distortion Region of Joint Identification and Sensing for Multiple Access Channels

In contrast to Shannon transmission codes, the size of identification (ID) codes for discrete memoryless channels (DMCs) experiences doubly exponential growth with the block length when randomized encoding is used. Additional enhancements within the ID paradigm can be realized through supplementary resources such as quantum entanglement, common randomness (CR), and feedback. Joint transmission and sensing demonstrate significant benefits over separation-based methods. Inspired by the significant impact of feedback on the ID capacity, our work delves into the realm of joint ID and sensing (JIDAS) for state-dependent multiple access channels (SD-MACs) with noiseless strictly casual feedback. Here, the senders aim to convey ID messages to the receiver while simultaneously sensing the channel states. We establish a lower bound on the capacity-distortion region of the SD-MACs. An example shows that JIDAS outperforms the separation-based approach.

cs.IT↗

arXiv2024

Identification via Gaussian Multiple Access Channels in the Presence of Feedback

We investigate message identification over a K-sender Gaussian multiple access channel (K-GMAC). Unlike conventional Shannon transmission codes, the size of randomized identification (ID) codes experiences a doubly exponential growth in the code length. Improvements in the ID approach can be attained through additional resources such as quantum entanglement, common randomness (CR), and feedback. It has been demonstrated that an infinite capacity can be attained for a single-user Gaussian channel with noiseless feedback, irrespective of the chosen rate scaling. We establish the capacity region of both the K-sender Gaussian multiple access channel (K-GMAC) and the K-sender state-dependent Gaussian multiple access channel (K-SD-GMAC) when strictly causal noiseless feedback is available.

cs.IT↗

arXiv2024

Second 6G life Workshop on Post Shannon Theory

The one-day workshop, held prior to the "ZIF Workshop on Information Theory and Related Fields", provided an excellent opportunity for in-depth discussions on several topics within the field of post-Shannon theory. The agenda covered deterministic and randomized identification, focusing on various methods and algorithms for identifying data or signals deterministically and through randomized processes. It explored the theoretical foundations and practical applications of these techniques. The session on resources for increasing identification capacity examined the different resources and strategies that can be utilized to boost the capacity for identifying information. This included discussions on both hardware and software solutions, as well as innovative approaches to resource allocation and optimization. Participants delved into common randomness generation, essential for various cryptographic protocols and communication systems. The session highlighted recent advancements and practical implementations of common randomness in secure communications. The workshop concluded with a detailed look at the development and practical deployment of identification codes. Experts shared insights on code construction techniques, implementation challenges, and real-world applications in various communication systems. We extend our thanks to the esteemed speakers for their valuable contributions: Caspar von Lengerke, Wafa Labidi, Ilya Vorobyev, Johannes Rosenberger, Jonathan Huffmann, and Pau Colomer. Their presentations and insights significantly enriched the workshop. Additionally, we are grateful to all the participants whose active engagement, constructive comments, and stimulating discussions made the event a success. Your involvement was crucial in fostering a collaborative and intellectually vibrant environment.

cs.IT↗

arXiv2024

Converse Techniques for Identification via Channels

The model of identification via channels, introduced by Ahlswede and Dueck, has attracted increasing attention in recent years. One such promising direction is message identification via channels, introduced by Ahlswede and Dueck. Unlike in Shannon's classical model, where the receiver aims to determine which message was sent from a set of $M$ messages, message identification focuses solely on discerning whether a specific message $m$ was transmitted. The encoder can operate deterministically or through randomization, with substantial advantages observed particularly in the latter approach. While Shannon's model allows transmission of $M = 2^{nC}$ messages, Ahlswede and Dueck's model facilitates the identification of $M = 2^{2^{nC}}$ messages, exhibiting a double exponential growth in block length. In their seminal paper, Ahlswede and Dueck established the achievability and introduced a "soft" converse bound. Subsequent works have further refined this, culminating in a strong converse bound, applicable under specific conditions. Watanabe's contributions have notably enhanced the applicability of the converse bound. The aim of this survey is multifaceted: to grasp the formalism and proof techniques outlined in the aforementioned works, analyze Watanabe's converse, trace the evolution from earlier converses to Watanabe's, emphasizing key similarities and differences that underpin the enhancements. Furthermore, we explore the converse proof for message identification with feedback, also pioneered by Ahlswede and Dueck. By elucidating how their approaches were inspired by preceding proofs, we provide a comprehensive overview. This overview paper seeks to offer readers insights into diverse converse techniques for message identification, with a focal point on the seminal works of Hayashi, Watanabe, and, in the context of feedback, Ahlswede and Dueck.

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arXiv2023

Joint Identification and Sensing for Discrete Memoryless Channels

In the identification (ID) scheme proposed by Ahlswede and Dueck, the receiver's goal is simply to verify whether a specific message of interest was sent. Unlike Shannon's transmission codes, which aim for message decoding, ID codes for a Discrete Memoryless Channel (DMC) are far more efficient: their size grows doubly exponentially with the blocklength when randomized encoding is used. This indicates that, when the receiver's objective does not require decoding, the ID paradigm is significantly more efficient than traditional Shannon transmission in terms of both energy consumption and hardware complexity. Further benefits of ID schemes can be realized by leveraging additional resources such as feedback. In this work, we address the problem of joint ID and channel state estimation over a DMC with independent and identically distributed (i.i.d.) state sequences. State estimation functions as the sensing mechanism of the model. Specifically, the sender transmits an ID message over the DMC while simultaneously estimating the channel state through strictly causal observations of the channel output. Importantly, the random channel state is unknown to both the sender and the receiver. For this system model, we present a complete characterization of the ID capacity-distortion function.

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