Tbps wide-field parallel optical wireless communications based on a metasurface beam splitter

TL;DR

A new optical wireless communication system using a metasurface beam splitter supports ultra-fast data transfer for many users at once.

Contribution

A metasurface beam splitter enables Tbps-level communication with wide-angle coverage and 144 parallel users.

Findings

The system achieves 200 Gbps per user with wavelength division multiplexing.

The design supports over 28 Tbps total capacity with no blind spots or crosstalk.

The metasurface enables wide-angle (~120°) coverage for parallel user communication.

Abstract

Optical wireless communication (OWC) stands out as one of the most promising technologies in the sixth-generation (6G) mobile networks. The establishment of high-quality optical links between transmitters and receivers plays a crucial role in OWC performances. Here, by a compact beam splitter composed of a metasurface and a fiber array, we proposed a wide-angle (~120°) OWC optical link scheme that can parallelly support up to 144 communication users. Utilizing high-speed optical module sources and wavelength division multiplexing technique, we demonstrated each user can achieve a communication speed of 200 Gbps which enables the entire system to support ultra-high communication capacity exceeding 28 Tbps. Furthermore, utilizing the metasurface polarization multiplexing, we implemented a full range wide-angle OWC without blind area nor crosstalk among users. Our OWC scheme simultaneously possesses the advantages of high-speed, wide communication area and multi-user parallel communications, paving the way for revolutionary high-performance OWC in the future.

In this work, the authors present a metasurface-based wide-angle beam splitter designed for future applications in optical wireless communication. By leveraging the metasurface polarization multiplexing and wavelength division multiplexing properties, they achieved a high-performance optical wireless communication system, possessing a Tbps communication rate, more than 120° coverage range, and up to 144 users parallel communication capabilities.

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