Published online by Cambridge University Press: 14 July 2016
The stochastic process resulting when pairs of events are formed from two point processes is a rich source of questions. When the two point processes have different rates, the resulting stochastic process has a mean drift towards either -∞ or +∞. However, when the two processes have equal rates, we end up with a null-recurrent Markov chain and this has interesting behavior. We study this process for both discrete and continuous times and consider special cases with applications in communications networks. One interesting result for applications is the waiting time of a packet waiting for a token, a special case of this pair-formation process. Pair formation by two independent Poisson processes of equal rates results in a point process that is asymptotically a Poisson process of the same rate.