Si-substrate vertical-structure InGaN/GaN micro-LED-based photodetector for beyond 10 Gbps visible light communication

Visible light communication(VLC)has emerged as a promising communication method in 6G.However,the development of receiving devices is much slower than that of transmitting devices,limited by materials,structures,and fabrication.In this paper,we propose and fabricate an InGaN/GaN multiple-quantum-well-based vertical-structure micro-LED-based photodetector(μPD)on a Si substrate.A comprehensive comparison of the photoelectrical performance and communication performance of three sizes ofμPDs,10,50,and 100μm,is presented.The peak responsivity of all threeμPDs is achieved at 400 nm,while the passband full-widths at half maxima are 87,72,and 78 nm for 10,50,and 100μmμPDs,respectively.The−20 dB cutoff bandwidth is up to 822 MHz for 50μmμPD.A data rate of 10.14 Gbps is experimentally demonstrated by bit and power loading discrete multitone modulation and the proposed digital pre-equalizer algorithm over 1 m free space utilizing the self-designed 4×450μmμPD array as a receiver and a 450 nm laser diode as a transmitter.This is the first time a more than 10 Gbps VLC system has been achieved utilizing a GaN-based micro-PD,to the best of our knowledge.The investigation fully demonstrates the superiority of Si substrates and vertical structures in InGaN/GaNμPDs and shows its great potential for high-speed VLC links beyond 10 Gbps.