31.38 Gb/s GaN-based LED array visible light communication system enhanced with V-pit and sidewall quantum well structure

Although the 5G wireless network has made significant advances,it is not enough to accommodate the rapidly rising requirement for broader bandwidth in post-5G and 6G eras.As a result,emerging technologies in higher frequencies including visible light communication(VLC),are becoming a hot topic.In particular,LED-based VLC is foreseen as a key enabler for achieving data rates at the Tb/s level in indoor scenarios using multi-color LED arrays with wavelength division multiplexing(WDM)technology.This paper proposes an optimized multi-color LED array chip for high-speed VLC systems.Its long-wavelength GaN-based LED units are remarkably enhanced by V-pit structure in their efficiency,especially in the“yellow gap”region,and it achieves significant improvement in data rate compared with earlier research.This work investigates the V-pit structure and tries to provide insight by introducing a new equivalent circuit model,which provides an explanation of the simulation and experiment results.In the final test using a laboratory communication system,the data rates of eight channels from short to long wavelength are 3.91 Gb/s,3.77 Gb/s,3.67 Gb/s,4.40 Gb/s,3.78 Gb/s,3.18 Gb/s,4.31 Gb/s,and 4.35 Gb/s(31.38 Gb/s in total),with advanced digital signal processing(DSP)techniques including digital equalization technique and bit-power loading discrete multitone(DMT)modulation format.

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.