This work studies the throughput scaling laws of ad hoc wireless networks in the limit of a large number of nodes. A random connections model is assumed in which the channel connections between the nodes are drawn independently from a common distribution. Transmitting nodes are subject to an on-off strategy, and receiving nodes employ conventional single-user decoding. The following results are proven: 1) for a class of connection models with finite mean and variance, the throughput scaling is

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... pper-bounded by ( 1 3 ) for single-hop schemes, and ( 1 2 ) for two-hop (and multihop) schemes; 2) the 2( 1 2 ) throughput scaling is achievable for a specific connection model by a two-hop opportunistic relaying scheme, which employs full, but only local channel state information (CSI) at the receivers, and partial CSI at the transmitters; 3) by relaxing the constraints of finite mean and variance of the connection model, linear throughput scaling 2( ) is achievable with Pareto-type fading models. Index Terms-Ad hoc networks, channel state information (CSI), multiuser diversity, opportunistic communication, random connections, scaling law, throughput.