Terahertz-Based IRS-Assisted Secure Symbiotic Radio Communication: A DRL Approach
Open accessAbstract
Developing wireless communication technologies is essential to satisfy the requirements of new applications and the increasing proliferation of interconnected devices. This research presents a resilient terahertz (THz)-based secure transmission framework for an active intelligent reflecting surface (IRS)-enabled symbiotic radio (SR) system in the presence of multiple eavesdroppers (Eves). The IRS facilitates secure transmission for the primary transmitter (PT) by intelligently adjusting the phase shifts of the signals from the PT, while simultaneously transmitting its own data to an Internet of Things (IoT) device. In light of the existence of numerous eves and unpredictable channels in real-world situations, we concurrently optimize the active beamforming of the PT and the phase shifts of the IRS to enhance the secrecy of IRS-assisted secure relay networks while adhering to quality-of-service standards and secure communication rates. To address this intricate non-convex stochastic optimization issue, we propose a secure beamforming technique named DDPG-SR, utilizing an effective deep reinforcement learning (DRL)-based deep deterministic policy gradient (DDPG) scheme to determine the optimal beamforming approach against Eves. This method seeks to establish an optimal beamforming strategy to counteract Eves under dynamic environmental circumstances. Comprehensive simulation experiments confirm the effectiveness of our proposed solution, showcasing enhanced performance relative to conventional IRS methods, IRS backscattering-based anti-evesdropping techniques, and other benchmark tactics for secrecy performance.
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
The legal position of DRLs varies; in the UK, they facilitate adherence to regulatory mandates under IR(ME)R, but in Japan and Saudi Arabia, they are only advisory.
“Moreover, the legal position of DRLs varies; in the UK, they facilitate adherence to regulatory mandates under IR(ME)R,117 but in Japan and Saudi Arabia, they are only advisory.”
From Computed Tomography Diagnostic Reference Levels Worldwide and in Jordan: Implications for Patient Dose Reduction (2026) · cites this paper as [117]
The paper’s index terms (p. 1) use DRL to mean deep reinforcement learning, and its algorithm-design section (p. 7) discusses wireless beamforming. Searches for IR(ME)R, diagnostic reference levels, and the named countries found no passage addressing their legal status. (LLM, conf=0.78)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Cites
Part of this paper’s reference list could not be split into single entries.
Hybrid Beamforming for Massive MIMO: A Survey
Molisch, A. F., Ratnam, V. V., Han, S., Li, Z., Nguyen, S. L. H., Li, L., & Haneda, K. (2017) · IEEE Communications Magazine · doi:10.1109/mcom.2017.1600400 · Cited by 1,165 · see citing works
Active Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface-Aided Wireless Communications
Long, R., Liang, Y.-C., Pei, Y., & Larsson, E. G. (2021) · IEEE Transactions on Wireless Communications · doi:10.1109/twc.2021.3064024 · Cited by 718 · see citing works
Terahertz Communications and Sensing for 6G and Beyond: A Comprehensive Review
Jiang, W., Jiang, W., Zhou, Q., Melnyk, S., Zhou, S., Habibi, M. A., Han, B., Schotten, H. D., Renzo, M. D., Luo, F.-L., et al. (2024) · IEEE Communications Surveys & Tutorials · doi:10.1109/comst.2024.3385908 · Cited by 574 · see citing works
Symbiotic Radio: A New Communication Paradigm for Passive Internet of Things
Long, R., Liang, Y., Guo, H., Yang, G., & Zhang, R. (2019) · IEEE Internet of Things Journal · doi:10.1109/jiot.2019.2954678 · Cited by 392 · see citing works
Terahertz Massive MIMO With Holographic Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces
Wan, Z., Gao, Z., Gao, F., Renzo, M. D., & Alouini, M. (2021) · IEEE Transactions on Communications · doi:10.1109/tcomm.2021.3064949 · Cited by 276 · see citing works
UAV-Assisted and Intelligent Reflecting Surfaces-Supported Terahertz Communications
Pan, Y., Wang, K., Pan, C., Zhu, H., & Wang, J. (2021) · IEEE Wireless Communications Letters · doi:10.1109/lwc.2021.3063365 · Cited by 188 · see citing works
Secure Transmission for Intelligent Reflecting Surface-Assisted mmWave and Terahertz Systems
Qiao, J., & Alouini, M. (2020) · IEEE Wireless Communications Letters · doi:10.1109/lwc.2020.3003400 · Cited by 175 · see citing works
Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface Assisted MIMO Symbiotic Radio Networks
Zhang, Q., Liang, Y., & Poor, H. V. (2021) · IEEE Transactions on Communications · doi:10.1109/tcomm.2021.3070043 · Cited by 174 · see citing works
Priebe, S., Kannicht, M., Jacob, M., & Kürner, T. (2013) · Journal of Communications and Networks · doi:10.1109/jcn.2013.000103 · Cited by 153 · see citing works
Alhashimi, H. F., Hindia, M. N., Dimyati, K., Hanafi, E., Safie, N., Qamar, F., Azrin, K., & Nguyễn, Q. N. (2023) · Electronics · doi:10.3390/electronics12030647 · Cited by 117 · see citing works
Energy Efficient Beamforming Design for MISO Non-Orthogonal Multiple Access Systems
Al-Obiedollah, H. M., Cumanan, K., Thiyagalingam, J., Burr, A. G., Ding, Z., & Dobre, O. A. (2019) · IEEE Transactions on Communications · doi:10.1109/tcomm.2019.2900634 · Cited by 82 · see citing works
Lei, X., Wu, M., Zhou, F., Tang, X., Hu, R. Q., & Fan, P. (2021) · IEEE Wireless Communications · doi:10.1109/mwc.121.2100126 · Cited by 76 · see citing works
Robust Secure Transmission for Active RIS Enabled Symbiotic Radio Multicast Communications
Lyu, B., Zhou, C., Gong, S., Hoang, D. T., & Liang, Y. (2023) · IEEE Transactions on Wireless Communications · doi:10.1109/twc.2023.3265770 · Cited by 69 · see citing works
A Survey on RIS Advances in Terahertz Communications: Emerging Paradigms and Research Frontiers
Ahmed, M., Wahid, A., Khan, W. U., Khan, F., Ihsan, A., Ali, Z., Rabie, K. M., Shongwe, T., & Han, Z. (2024) · IEEE Access · doi:10.1109/access.2024.3482564 · Cited by 63 · see citing works
Self-citationSecuring Intelligent Reflecting Surface Assisted Terahertz Systems
Qiao, J., Zhang, C., Dong, A., Bian, J., & Alouini, M. (2022) · IEEE Transactions on Vehicular Technology · doi:10.1109/tvt.2022.3172763 · Cited by 62 · see citing works
Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface Empowered Symbiotic Radio Over Broadcasting Signals
Xu, X., Liang, Y., Yang, G., & Zhao, L. Y. (2021) · IEEE Transactions on Communications · doi:10.1109/tcomm.2021.3096933 · Cited by 59 · see citing works
Cooperative Beamforming for Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface-Assisted Symbiotic Radios
Zhou, H., Kang, X., Liang, Y., Sun, S., & Shen, X. (2022) · IEEE Transactions on Vehicular Technology · doi:10.1109/tvt.2022.3190515 · Cited by 51 · see citing works
Intelligent Reflecting Surface-Aided Secure Broadcasting in Millimeter Wave Symbiotic Radio Networks
Wang, C., Li, Z., Zheng, T.-X., Ng, D. W. K., & Al‐Dhahir, N. (2021) · IEEE Transactions on Vehicular Technology · doi:10.1109/tvt.2021.3108452 · Cited by 50 · see citing works
Sum Secrecy Rate Maximization for IRS-Aided Multi-Cluster MIMO-NOMA Terahertz Systems
Xu, J., Zhu, Z., Chu, Z., Niu, H., Xiao, P., & Lee, I. (2023) · IEEE Transactions on Information Forensics and Security · doi:10.1109/tifs.2023.3293957 · Cited by 50 · see citing works
NOMA-Based Backscatter Communications: Fundamentals, Applications, and Advancements
Ahmed, M., Shahwar, M., Khan, F., Khan, W. U., Ihsan, A., Khan, U. S., Xu, F., & Chatzinotas, S. (2024) · IEEE Internet of Things Journal · doi:10.1109/jiot.2024.3391219 · Cited by 46 · see citing works
Self-citationImproving Security of THz Communication with Intelligent Reflecting Surface
Ning, B., Chen, Z., Chen, W., & Li, L. (2019) · IEEE Globecom Workshops (GC Wkshps) · doi:10.1109/gcwkshps45667.2019.9024636 · Cited by 36 · see citing works
Saqib, N. U., Hou, S., Chae, S. H., & Jeon, S.-W. (2024) · IEEE Transactions on Wireless Communications · doi:10.1109/twc.2024.3387449 · Cited by 36 · see citing works
Deep Learning Aided Intelligent Reflective Surfaces for 6G: A Survey
Tariq, M. H., Ahmad, S., Jan, M. A., & Song, H. H. (2024) · ACM Computing Surveys · doi:10.1145/3696414 · Cited by 33 · see citing works
Self-citationA Review on SDR, Spectrum Sensing, and CR-based IoT in Cognitive Radio Networks
Kassri, N., En‐Nouaary, A., Bah, S., & Baghdadi, H. (2021) · International Journal of Advanced Computer Science and Applications · doi:10.14569/ijacsa.2021.0120613 · Cited by 26 · see citing works
A Survey of Symbiotic Radio: Methodologies, Applications, and Future Directions
Janjua, M. B., & Arslan, H. (2023) · Sensors · doi:10.3390/s23052511 · Cited by 25 · see citing works
Secure Communications with THz Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces and Deep Learning in 6G Systems
Kiran, A., Sonker, A., Jadhav, S. R., Jadhav, M. M., Ramesh, J. V. N., & Muniyandy, E. (2024) · Wireless Personal Communications · doi:10.1007/s11277-024-11163-7 · Cited by 16 · see citing works
DRL-Based IRS-Assisted Secure Hybrid Visible Light and mmWave Communications
Saifaldeen, D. A., Albaseer, A. M., Çiftler, B. S., Abdallah, M. M., & Qaraqe, K. A. (2024) · IEEE Open Journal of the Communications Society · doi:10.1109/ojcoms.2024.3395425 · Cited by 14 · see citing works
You, Y., Jung, Y.-A., Choi, S.-C., & Hwang, I. (2020) · IEEE Internet of Things Journal · doi:10.1109/jiot.2020.3021101 · Cited by 13 · see citing works
Intelligent-Reflecting-Surface-Enhanced Cell-Free Symbiotic Radio Systems
Peng, X., Tao, Q., Gan, X., & Zhong, C. (2023) · IEEE Internet of Things Journal · doi:10.1109/jiot.2023.3267658 · Cited by 11 · see citing works
Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface Assisted Secure Symbiotic Radio Multicast Communications
Zhou, C., Lyu, B., Hoang, D. T., & Gong, S. (2022) · IEEE Vehicular Technology Conference · doi:10.1109/vtc2022-fall57202.2022.10012813 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
Terahertz Multiple Access: A Deep Reinforcement Learning Controlled Multihop IRS Topology
Shehab, M., Elsayed, M., Almohamad, A., Badawy, A., Khattab, T. M., Zorba, N., Hasna, M. O., & Trinchero, D. (2024) · IEEE Open Journal of the Communications Society · doi:10.1109/ojcoms.2024.3357701 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
Secure transmission design for RIS-aided symbiotic radio networks: A DRL approach
Li, B., Liu, W., & Xie, W. (2024) · Digital Communications and Networks · doi:10.1016/j.dcan.2024.03.002 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
Ma, R., Tang, J., Zhang, X. Y., Wong, K., & Chambers, J. A. (2024) · IEEE Transactions on Cognitive Communications and Networking · doi:10.1109/tccn.2024.3431889 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
Advanced security measures in coupled phase-shift STAR-RIS networks: A DRL approach
Wahid, A., Abideen, S. Z. U., Ahmed, M., Khan, W. U., Sheraz, M., Chuah, T. C., & Lee, Y. L. (2024) · Journal of King Saud University - Computer and Information Sciences · doi:10.1016/j.jksuci.2024.102215 · Cited by 8 · see citing works
Self-citationCao, Y., Lien, S., Liang, Y., & Niyato, D. T. (2024) · IEEE Network · doi:10.1109/mnet.2024.3424874 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
Beamforming Design for Intelligent Reflecting Surface-Enhanced Symbiotic Radio Systems
Hu, S., Liu, C., Wei, Z., Cai, Y., Ng, D. W. K., & Yuan, J. (2022) · International Conference on Communications · doi:10.1109/icc45855.2022.9838902 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
Anti-Jamming Null Space Projection Beamforming Based on Symbiotic Radio
Ji, B., Liu, Y., Li, T., Xing, L., Wang, W., Mumtaz, S., Shang, X., Liu, W., & Han, C. (2023) · Computer Modeling in Engineering & Sciences · doi:10.32604/cmes.2023.028667 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
Sheraz, M., Chuah, T. C., Sultan, K., Ahmed, M., Lee, I. E., & Tan, S. C. (2024) · Journal of King Saud University - Computer and Information Sciences · doi:10.1016/j.jksuci.2024.102249 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
Self-citationHussain, T., Shahwar, M., Abdin, S. Z. U., Zaheen, Z., Jan, N., & Shoaib, M. (2024) · The Asian Bulletin of Big Data Management · doi:10.62019/abbdm.v4i02.13 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Self-citation
Flagged first, then by citations
Cited by
Sorted by citations
RIS ‐Driven Resource Allocation Strategies for Diverse Network Environments: A Comprehensive Review
Ahmed, M., Xu, F., Lyu, Y., Soofi, A. A., Li, Y., Khan, F., Khan, W. U., Sheraz, M., Chuah, T. C., & Deng, M. (2025) · Transactions on Emerging Telecommunications Technologies · doi:10.1002/ett.70160 · Cited by 21 · see citing works
Self-citationFiroozi, A. A., & Firoozi, A. A. (2025) · Measurement · doi:10.1016/j.measurement.2025.117318 · Cited by 15 · see citing works
Secure THz Communication in 6G: A Two-Stage DRL Approach for IRS-Assisted NOMA
Shahwar, M., Ahmed, M., Hussain, T., Sheraz, M., Khan, W. U., & Chuah, T. C. (2025) · IEEE Access · doi:10.1109/access.2025.3569708 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
Self-citationAlatawi, M. N. (2026) · Computer Networks · doi:10.1016/j.comnet.2026.112259 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Enhancing the vehicular communications with intelligent reflecting surfaces: a comprehensive survey
Abid, W., Hajjaj, M., & Bouallègue, R. (2026) · Cluster Computing · doi:10.1007/s10586-026-05955-8 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Oglat, A., Shdaifat, S., Sayah, M., Abukonna, A., & Khogali, W. (2026) · Drug, Healthcare and Patient Safety · doi:10.2147/dhps.s595721
“113”
Enhanced Sum rate in IRS-THz System using Hybrid Iterative Optimization Algorithm
Fatima, S., Anand, V., Thodupunoori, P., Putchakayala, V. R., Relangi, A. K., Gudivada Abraham, A. K., & Utla Surya Bhadra Kanaka, M. (2025) · passer · doi:10.24271/psr.2025.504030.1928
Secure beamforming via machine learning-driven joint optimization in IRS-assisted wireless systems
Sivasankar, S., & Markkandan, S. (2025) · ICT Express · doi:10.1016/j.icte.2025.10.014
Wang, C., Liu, Z., Zhang, J., & Feng, J. (2025) · IEEE International Conference on Computer and Communications (ICCC) · doi:10.1109/iccc68654.2025.11437831
Mobility‐Aware IRS‐Assisted Hybrid NOMA With Deep Reinforcement Learning for THz Enabled 6G Networks
Chandrasekhar, R., & Singh, P. (2026) · International Journal of Communication Systems · doi:10.1002/dac.70491
Geetha, Angeline, Abinaya, Subramani, K., & Shobana, M. (2026) · ShodhKosh Journal of Visual and Performing Arts · doi:10.29121/shodhkosh.v7.i12s.2026.8671
Terahertz Underlay D2D Using RIS Partitioning: Ergodic Rate Analysis and Optimization
Jose, J., Vishwakarma, N., & Madhukumar, A. S. (2026) · IEEE Wireless Communications and Networking Conference · doi:10.1109/wcnc65185.2026.11555678
Shahwar, M., Ahmed, M., Hussain, T., Durrani, S., Sheraz, M., Chuah, T. C., & Lee, I. E. (2026) · Computer Networks · doi:10.1016/j.comnet.2026.112870
Self-citation
- Authors
- Shahwar, M., Ahmed, M., Hussain, T., Ahmad, S., Ullah Khan, W., Sheraz, M., & Chee Chuah, T.
- Affiliations
- Qingdao University (CN)
- Hubei Engineering University (CN)
- Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications (CN)
- Interdisciplinary Centre for Security, Reliability and Trust (SnT), University of Luxembourg, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
- Multimedia University (MY)
- Faculty of Engineering, Multimedia University, Cyberjaya, Selangor, Malaysia
- ORCID
- Venue
- IEEE Access
- Published
- 2025
- Volume
- 13
- Pages
- 24014-24027
- ISSN
- 2169-3536 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W4407168446
- Cited by
- 11
- References
- 39
- Citations by year
- 2026: 6 · 2025: 5
- FWCI
- 2.47
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- IEEE Access (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- Siti Hasmah Digital Library-MMU Institutiona Repository (Multimedia University) (acceptedVersion)
- Open Repository and Bibliography (University of Luxembourg) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- OSTI OAI (U.S. Department of Energy Office of Scientific and Technical Information) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- Multimedia University (MMUI/240021)
- Telekom Research and Development Sdn Bhd (RDTC/241149)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Engineering › Electrical and Electronic Engineering › Wireless Communication Security Techniques
- Physical Sciences › Engineering › Electrical and Electronic Engineering › Advanced Wireless Communication Technologies
- Physical Sciences › Computer Science › Computer Networks and Communications › IoT and Edge/Fog Computing
- Keywords
- terahertz communication, reconfigurable intelligent surface, symbiotic radio, physical layer security, eavesdropper, deep deterministic policy gradient, deep reinforcement learning, beamforming optimization, phase shift optimization, secrecy rate, Internet of Things
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
