Green Optical Wireless Communications Facilitated by Photonic Power Harvesting "GreenCom"

如今，智能手机和可穿戴设备等移动的设备通常由电池供电，而与互联网的数据连接则由射频（RF）信号提供。对我们的移动的设备进行日常充电的需求被认为是扩大物联网（IoT）连接数量以及大规模引入增强和虚拟现实（AR/VR）和工业4.0应用等新设备的障碍。与此同时，对更高数据速率和超低延迟数据连接的需求在未来的第六代（6 G）蜂窝网络中将增加。GreenCom项目将同时满足这两项要求。我们正在开发光无线通信系统，与当前的无线系统相比，该系统的数据速率高出10倍，同时该系统从数据链路和环境光中收集能量。该项目将为节能、超高速和超低延迟的无线连接释放新的潜力。该项目的宏伟目标是通过与德国弗劳恩霍夫太阳能系统研究所（伊势）的国际合作实现的，该研究所在开发节能光伏（PV）电池方面处于世界领先地位。伊势将开发独特的半导体器件，用于结合电力收集和数据接收，具有前所未有的光伏转换效率和数字数据接收能力。斯特拉斯克莱德大学的LiFi研究与开发中心（LRDC）将开发通信技术、算法和协议，以促进多用户环境中的最佳能量收集、超高数据速率和超低延迟。通过创建在空间上分开的并行传输链路并利用不同的波长，将实现所收集的功率和数据速率的可扩展性。此次合作将在未来可持续的移动的无线通信（包括光无线前传、光无线回传）领域以及物联网（IoT）、感知互联网和工业4.0应用的智能无线设备领域创造新的应用，从而为新的研究领域奠定基础。该项目内的联合实验将推动光无线多用户链路的性能界限，并将为同时收获功率和传输数据速率设定新的基准，分别在10米距离和10 Gb/s链路数据速率下收获1 W功率。

Today, mobile devices such as smartphones and wearables are usually powered by batteries, while a data connection to the internet is provided by radio frequency (RF) signals. The need for the daily charging of our mobile devices is considered a hurdle to scale the number of internet of things (IoT) connections and the large-scale introduction of new devices such as augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR) and industry 4.0 applications. At the same time, the demand for higher data rates and ultra-low latency data connections is set to increase in future sixth generation (6G) cellular networks. The GreenCom project will address both requirements jointly. We are developing optical wireless communication systems that achieve a 10 times higher data rate compared to current wireless systems, while the system harvests energy from the data link as well as the ambient light. The project will unlock new potentials for energy-efficient, ultra-high speed, and ultra-low latency wireless connectivity. The ambitious goals of this project are achieved through an international collaboration with the German Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE) who are world-leading in the development of energy efficient photovoltaic (PV) cells. ISE will develop unique semiconductor devices for combined power harvesting and data reception with unprecedented photovoltaic conversion efficiency and digital data reception capability. The University of Strathclyde's LiFi Research and Development Centre (LRDC) will develop the communication techniques, algorithms and protocols to facilitate optimum energy harvesting and ultra-high data rates and ultra-low latency in a multiuser environment. Scalability of both harvested power and data rates will be achieved by creating parallel transmission links separated in space and by means of different wavelengths. This partnership will create new applications in the fields of future sustainable mobile wireless communications (including optical wireless fronthaul, optical wireless backhaul) as well as smart wireless devices for the Internet of Things (IoT), the Internet of Senses and Industry 4.0 applications, and thereby lay the foundation for a new research area. Joint experimentation within the project will push the performance boundaries of optical wireless multiuser links and will set a new benchmark for simultaneous harvested power and transmitted data rates with 1 W harvested power at 10 m distance and 10 Gb/s link data rate, respectively.