Research on a micro-LED-Based Wavelength Division Multiplexing High-Speed Underwater Visible Light Communication System
YING Hong
ZHANG Tao
WANG Binfeng
LIU Tao
TANG Tang
HUI Tianyu
Abstract：This study investigated a proof-of-concept wavelength division multiplexing(WDM)ultra-high-speed underwater visible light communication(UVLC)system based on two commercial LEDs and five custom-designed micro-LEDs.By employing pre-equalization and orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing modulation techniques,an aggregate communication rate of 28.82 Gbps was achieved in a 0.6 m underwater environment.This represents a record-breaking transmission speed for micro-LED-based UVLC,a 43％increase over the previous highest record of 20.09 Gbps.Compared to a single-channel 455 nm micro-LED(7.23 Gbps),the system achieved a fourfold capacity gain.In addition,this study analyzed the modulation bandwidth and optical power characteristics of each wavelength source,and simulated extended-distance transmission using 63％and 40％neutral density filters.The WDM-UVLC system with a 63％filter achieved an aggregate data rate of 18.35 Gbps,with the shortest estimated transmission distance of 1.81 m for the 650 nm wavelength channel.Using a 40％filter,the WDM-UVLC achieved a total communication rate of 15.36 Gbps,with a shortest estimated transmission distance of 2.75 m,while blue-green wavelengths with lower attenuation in water exceeded an estimated 8 m transmission distance.Notably,for the 455 nm channel,a signal-to-noise ratio(SNR)reduction of only 5 dB was sufficient to maintain a bit error rate(BER)below 3.8 × 10-3,demonstrating the robustness and potential of the system under power fluctuations.This research not only validates the potential of wavelength division multiplexing combined with micro-LEDs for high-speed underwater communication but also highlights multi-color micro-LEDs as ideal candidates for WDM-UVLC transmitters.With appropriate optical filtering and design,more integrated WDM systems can be realized in the future.
Keywords：underwater visible light communicationwavelength division multiplexingmicro-LEDorthogonal frequency division multiplexing
Publication Date：2025-10-31
Online Publishing Date：2025-11-27(First online date of this platform, not the publication date of the document)
Pages：14( 60-73 )