  In this work, we evaluate local capacity of wireless ad hoc networks with
several medium access protocols and identify the most optimal protocol. We
define local capacity as the average information rate received by a receiver
randomly located in the network. We analyzed grid pattern protocols where
simultaneous transmitters are positioned in a regular grid pattern, pure ALOHA
protocols where simultaneous transmitters are dispatched according to a uniform
Poisson distribution and exclusion protocols where simultaneous transmitters
are dispatched according to an exclusion rule such as node coloring and carrier
sense protocols. Our analysis allows us to conjecture that local capacity is
optimal when simultaneous transmitters are positioned in a grid pattern based
on equilateral triangles and our results show that this optimal local capacity
is at most double the local capacity of simple ALOHA protocol. Our results also
show that node coloring and carrier sense protocols approach the optimal local
capacity by an almost negligible difference.
