Ultrabroadband on-chip photonics for full-spectrum wireless communications

Area of Science:

• Photonics and Wireless Communications
• Integrated Photonics
• Next-Generation Wireless Networks

Background:

• Future wireless networks require hardware adaptable across microwave, millimeter wave, and terahertz bands.
• Existing solutions struggle with limited bandwidth and rigid architectures.
• A unified, reconfigurable hardware solution is needed for full-band coverage and dynamic spectrum management.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate adaptive wireless communication over an unprecedented frequency range.
• To develop a versatile hardware solution for future wireless networks.
• To leverage thin-film lithium niobate for integrated photonic wireless systems.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a thin-film lithium niobate (TFLN) photonic wireless system.
• Leveraged the Pockels effect for monolithic integration of modulation, conversion, and signal generation.
• Employed broadband tunable optoelectronic oscillators for signal generation.

Main Results:

• Achieved adaptive wireless communication over a 100+ GHz frequency range (0.5 GHz to 115 GHz).
• Demonstrated monolithic integration of essential functional elements on the TFLN platform.
• Realized full-link wireless communication up to 100 Gbps across nine consecutive bands.
• Showcased real-time reconfigurability for adaptive frequency allocation.

Conclusions:

• The TFLN photonic wireless system enables unprecedented broadband and reconfigurable wireless communication.
• This technology marks a significant advancement towards future full-spectrum, omni-scenario wireless networks.
• The system's adaptability is crucial for enhanced reliability in complex spectrum environments.