# Defining and Surveying Wireless Link Virtualization and Wireless Network Virtualization

## TL;DR

This paper develops a formal theory to define wireless link virtualization, enabling clearer classification and comparison of existing work, and provides a comprehensive survey highlighting research gaps and future directions.

## Contribution

It introduces a formal framework for defining wireless link virtualization and uses it to systematically survey existing research in the field.

## Key findings

- Provides a formal classification of virtualization levels
- Distinguishes between resource allocation and virtualization work
- Identifies research gaps and future opportunities

## Abstract

Virtualization is a topic of great interest in the area of mobile and wireless communication systems. However the term virtualization is used in an inexact manner which makes it difficult to compare and contrast work that has been carried out to date. The purpose of this paper is twofold. In the first place, the paper develops a formal theory for defining virtualization. In the second instance, this theory is used as a way of surveying a body of work in the field of wireless link virtualization, a subspace of wireless network virtualization. The formal theory provides a means for distinguishing work that should be classed as resource allocation as distinct from virtualization. It also facilitates a further classification of the representation level at which the virtualization occurs, which makes comparison of work more meaningful. The paper provides a comprehensive survey and highlights gaps in the research that make for fruitful future work.