Exploring Mid-IR FSO Communications With Unipolar Quantum OptoelectronicsShow others and affiliations
2024 (English)In: Journal of Lightwave Technology, ISSN 0733-8724, E-ISSN 1558-2213Article in journal (Refereed) Epub ahead of print
Abstract [en]
Free space optical (FSO) communication is considered a critical part of future ICT infrastructure, particularly in non-terrestrial communication segments. In this context, the ability to achieve fast and reliable FSO propagation through long-distance atmospheric channels is the most important factor in choosing technological solutions. One property of optics directly related to this factor is the choice of wavelength. It has been identified that the mid-infrared (mid-IR) regime, which includes two atmospheric transmission windows - the mid-wave IR (MWIR, 3-5 μm) and the long-wave IR (LWIR, 8-12 μm) - can potentially offer a promising solution for achieving such performance. Additionally, viable semiconductor sources and detectors that support high-speed and efficient signal transmission are also considered critical to generating sufficient critical mass to advance the application of mid-IR FSO. Unipolar quantum optoelectronics, including quantum cascade lasers (QCL), Stark modulators, quantum cascade detectors (QCD), and quantum-well IR photodetectors (QWIP), among other components, emerge as potential candidates to build such FSO subsystems and systems. We present our recent efforts in conducting subsystem and system-level studies with different variants of these unipolar quantum optoelectronics and demonstrate the potential for feasible transmitter and receiver performance in a laboratory environment. We also discuss the key challenges and considerations of such technologies towards practical development. Finally, we summarize recent research and development efforts worldwide in advancing this highly promising direction.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc. , 2024.
Keywords [en]
Infrared detectors; Infrared transmission; Modulators; Quantum cascade lasers; Quantum communication; Quantum electronics; Quantum optics; Quantum well infrared photodetectors; Radiometers; Remote sensing; Space optics; Atmospheric channels; Cascade lasers; Free Space Optical communication; Free-space optical; Freespace optics; ICT infrastructures; Midinfrared; Quantum cascades; Terrestrial communication; Unipolar quantum optoelectronic; Semiconductor quantum wells
National Category
Electrical Engineering, Electronic Engineering, Information Engineering
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:ri:diva-76128DOI: 10.1109/JLT.2024.3472452Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-85205827205OAI: oai:DiVA.org:ri-76128DiVA, id: diva2:1916759
Note
This work was supported in part by the EU H2020 cFLOW Project (828893), in part by the Swedish Research Council (VR) project 2019-05197 and project ‘BRAIN’ 2022-04798, in part by the LZP FLPP project ‘MIRFAST’ lzp 2023-1-0503, and in part by the strategic innovation program Smarter Electronic Systems a joint venture by Vinnova, Formas and theSwedish Energy Agency A FRONTAHUL project (2023-00659)
2024-11-282024-11-282024-11-28Bibliographically approved