A multiplicative multifractal model for TCP traffic

previous studies have shown that TCP traffic displays strong multifractal scaling. However a physical explanation of why such a behavior occurs is still elusive. We propose a cascade model that is based on the retransmission and congestion avoidance mechanisms of TCP. At the same time, it relates to the physical, tree-like organization of networks. This model allows one to relate the most salient multifractal features with basic traffic parameters as the round trip time (RTT) and the loss probability. Numerical experiments confirm that such a parsimonious model is able to give a satisfactory explanation for a number of features pertaining to multifractality, including the range of scales where it is observed. We believe these results open the way to a more profound understanding of the small time scale properties of TCP traffic.