Analytical framework for UAV-enabled wireless communication with D2D networks

This study analyzes the performance of Device-to-Device (D2D) communication in drone-assisted cellular networks, focusing on coverage probability, system throughput, and energy efficiency. Simulation results reveal that increasing UAV altitude improves the probability of line-of-sight (LoS) communication, enhancing coverage probability up to 92% at optimal altitudes. However, higher altitudes also increase path loss, leading to a 15% reduction in total system throughput. Additionally, an optimal D2D user density of 50 users per km2 is identified to balance interference and resource utilization effectively. Uplink and downlink scenarios show that interference significantly affects the success transmission probability, which declines by 25% when the SINR threshold increases from 0 to 10 dB. In public safety scenarios, underlay in-band communication enables D2D users to establish reliable indirect links via cellular users, ensuring critical message delivery with energy efficiency improvements of up to 18%. These findings provide actionable insights for optimizing UAV deployment and resource allocation in D2D networks.