Edmonds, Jeffrey A.2015-08-282015-08-282014-09-172015-08-28http://hdl.handle.net/10315/29879Efficient medium access control (MAC) is a key part of any wireless network communication architecture. MAC protocols are needed for nodes to access the shared wireless medium efficiently. Providing high throughput is one of the primary goals of the MAC protocols designed for wireless networks. MAC protocols for Wireless Sensor and Ad hoc networks (WSANs) must also conserve energy as sensor nodes have limited battery power. On the other hand, MAC protocols for Vehicular Ad hoc networks (VANETs) must also adapt to the highly dynamic nature of the network. As communication link failure is very common in VANETs because of the fast movement of vehicles so quick reservation of packet transmission slots by vehicles is important. In this thesis we propose two new distributed MAC algorithms. One is for WSANs and the other one is for VANETs. We demonstrate using simulations that our algorithms outperform the state-of-the-art algorithms.enAuthor owns copyright, except where explicitly noted. Please contact the author directly with licensing requests.Computer scienceComputer engineeringElectronic Thesis or Dissertation2015-08-28Medium Access Control protocolsTime Division Multiple AccessWireless Sensor and Ad Hoc NetworksSelection WindowVehicular Ad Hoc NetworksBroadcast communication