Multi-Gigabit/s LiFi Networking for 6G
Harald Haas
The University of Strathclyde
LiFi Research and Development Centre
Glasgow G1 1XW
harald.haas@strath.ac.uk
Abstract  We show that the optical spectrum can be used
to build terabit per second (Tbps) secure wireless access
networks. Two fundamental advantages of this spectrum
are: 1) there are off-the-shelf transmitter and receiver
devices that can be used today, and 2) this spectrum is
completely unregulated and free. We conclude that in 6G
wireless access networks we will witness a paradigm shift
from RF to optical.
1 Introduction
It is generally accepted that new spectrum is
required in 6G to future-proof wireless
communications. The optical spectrum is 2600
times larger than the entire 300 GHz radio
frequency (RF) spectrum. It is unregulated and can
2021 IEEE CPMT Symposium Japan (ICSJ) | 978-1-6654-4079-0/21/$31.00 ©2021 IEEE | DOI: 10.1109/ICSJ52620.2021.9648883
enhance physical layer security by orders of
magnitude. Unlike in terahertz communications
(typically 200 GHz – 10 THz), there are commercial
transmitter and receiver devices as well as photonic
systems that exist today. The field can hugely
benefit from decades of technology developments
in optical fibre communications and more recently
in light detection and ranging (lidar) systems and
technologies. Furthermore, the vision of using the
optical spectrum to build wireless access networks
also seems be very well aligned with 6G initiatives
such as the Innovative Optical Wireless Network
(IOWN) project in Japan [1]. IOWN aims at
developing all-photonics networks.
2 Transmission sources
One of the key advantages of using the infrared and
visible spectra (to build future wireless networks
compared to the terahertz spectrum
(200 GHz – 10 THz), is that powerful optical
transmitter devices and receiver devices exist today.
Optical wireless communications, therefore,
leverages the massive advancements and
developments stemming from the field of optical
fibre communications in the infrared spectrum
between 1260 nm and 1675 nm. Moreover, vertical-
cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) typically
emitting within a spectral range of 800 nm and 1000
nm are also excellent candidates for optical wireless
communications. VCSELs are primarily used for
face-recognition and lidar systems. They exhibit
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high electrical bandwidth up to 50 GHz, are easy to
manufacture and are very small. In addition, a wide
range of visible light sources are available. Figure 1
shows different lighting devices and data rates that
have been achieved with these devices. The
ordinary white light emitting diode (LED) (a))
suffers from the slow frequency response of the
phosphor which is used to convert blue light into
white light. In contrast, red, green and blue (RGB)
LEDs (b)) do not need the phosphor and in addition
enable wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) to
linearly increase transmission speeds. Micro LEDs
(c)) are small, but yet offer optical output powers of
several mW. Because of their small size, the device
capacitance is also small, leading to a high 3 dB
bandwidth in the electrical domain. Micro LEDs
have been modulated up to 1 GHz using bit- and
power loading techniques in conjunction with
optimum orthogonal frequency division
multiplexing (OFDM) [2]. The new generation of
high-power white lights are based on blue lasers
instead of blue light emitting diodes (d)). Since the
blue laser is diffused by the excited phosphor, these
devices are eye-safe and exhibit one to two orders
improved 3 dB bandwidth compared to white
LEDs. Data rates of 10 Gbps have been achieved
with a single laserlight source at a distance of 2 m.
Due to their significantly improved light output,
communication distances of 50 m have also been
tested. A data rate of 850 Mbps at 50 m has been
measured. These devices may enable high-speed
wireless data links in data centres, high-speed car-
to-X communications or gigabit per second data
streaming from streetlights. Lastly, RGB lasers in
conjunction with a diffuser (e)) produce eye-safe
light while enabling WDM gains. As a
consequence, data rates of 100 Gbps and beyond
can be achieved. However, none of these devices
use the visible and infrared spectrum optimally yet,
since the emission spectrum is wide and the
electrical bandwidth of the devices is significantly
smaller than the optical bandwidth. However,
despite these existing inefficiencies, existing optical
devices enable data rates that are at least one order
of magnitude higher than in 5G cellular systems. In
25

addition, research has recognised the existing
inefficiencies in optical wireless communication
systems and new devices are being developed – not
only transmitter devices, but importantly also
receiver devices [3]. Furthermore, until now, mostly
intensity modulation / direct detection (IM/DD) has
been used to encode information in the emitted
light. Recently, coherent optical wireless
communication systems have been studied and
notable improvements in the signal-to-noise ratio at
the receiver have been reported [4]. In the future,
we may therefore see the introduction of coherent
transmission techniques in practical optical wireless
systems.
LiFi uses existing optical devices to build optical
wireless access networks. A LiFi network can use
the existing lighting infrastructure; thereby
allowing orders of magnitude improvements in cell
densification and system capacities towards 100
Gbps per m2 [5]. LiFi is not limited to visible light.
It also uses infrared light. Systems architectures
have been proposed that achieve aggregate date
rates of 1 Tbps and greater per optical access point.
The Universities of Leeds, Cambridge, Edinburgh,
Bath and Strathclyde in the United Kingdom are
currently developing this system as part of the first
large 6G research programme: Terabit Bidirectional
Multi-user Optical Wireless System (TOWS) for
6G LiFi.
3 Summary
Optical devices exist now which we can use to build
terabit per second wireless networks. We will
demonstrate that, with a single access point, we can
cover an entire room and that such an optical
wireless system can achieve aggregate data rates
greater than 1 Tbps.
26
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Figure 1: Achieved
data rates of different
visible light sources: a)
white light sources
using phosphor coated
blue LED chip; b) red,
green, blue (RGB)
white light sources, c)
blue gallium nitride
(GaN) micro LED, d)
white light sources
based on phosphor
excited by a blue laser,
e) RGB lasers
generating white light
using a diffuser.
The use of the optical spectrum enables orders of
magnitude improvements in physical layer security
in wireless access networks. Security features will,
therefore, not just be a bold-on, but an inherent
property.
We are witnessing a new paradigm shift in 6G
cellular communications which is the transition
from the RF spectrum to the optical spectrum. We
believe that the scale of this paradigm shift is
comparable with the paradigm shift from
‘analogue’ to ‘digital’ in 2nd generation (2G)
cellular systems. This advancement will yield
tremendous new opportunities in research and
industry. The vision is also in line with global 6G
initiatives such as the Innovative Optical and
Wireless Network (IOWN) Global Forum
objectives towards an all-photonics network.
References
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