Stochastic Channel Switching of Frequency-Encoded Signals in Molecular Communication Networks

This letter investigates the impact of noise on the functionality of channel switches in molecular communication networks. The channel switches considered in this letter are designed based on a set of biological cells that propagate frequency-encoded Ca2+ signals through gap junction channels. First, we develop a stochastic and generalized model of Ca2+ signaling considering three types of noise, such as internal noise, external noise, and gating noise of gap junction channels. Second, we develop a method based on spectral analysis to determine whether cells extract information from frequency-encoded Ca2+ signals. Third, we examine numerically whether channel switches propagate Ca2+ signals to selected cells in the presence of noise, and show how noise degrades the performance of channel switches.