Multi-target and ultra-high-speed optical wireless communication using a thin-film lithium niobate optical phased array

Multi-target and ultra-high-speed optical wireless communication using a thin-film lithium niobate optical phased array | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Multi-target and ultra-high-speed optical wireless communication using a thin-film lithium niobate optical phased array Yonghui Tian, Xiaoyue Ma, Mingrui Yuan, Jingchi Li, Hongdong Zhang, and 7 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7608159/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 15 Dec, 2025 Read the published version in Nature Communications → Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Optical wireless communication (OWC) utilizes the high monochromaticity, coherence, and directivity of laser beams to establish low-latency, high-capacity directional links. This approach effectively addresses challenges such as radio spectrum scarcity and signal attenuation. A major advance in this field comes from the incorporation of optical phased arrays (OPAs), which enable inertial-free, high-speed beam steering with transformative potential for mobile access, satellite communications, and emergency networks. In this contribution, we propose and demonstrate a multi-target and ultra-high-speed OWC system based on a thin-film lithium niobate (TFLN) OPA. The system achieves high-resolution beam steering across a wide field of view (FOV) with a sidelobe suppression ratio (SLSR) as low as − 13.6 dB. It supports picosecond-order beam steering and highly efficient modulation at a power consumption of only 8.73 pJ/π, and enables real-time multi-target connection without mechanical components or lenses. Notably, this system can achieve OWC with a single-channel communication data rate of up to 320 Gbps in the modulation format of 16-Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM), significantly exceeding the peak capabilities of 5G and current 6G proposals. System performance is further validated through the stable transmission of uncompressed high-definition video. This work establishes a new paradigm for fully solid-state, chip-scale OWC systems, combining unprecedented single-channel data throughput with dynamic multi-target support. It also provides a platform directly compatible with next-generation wireless networks. Physical sciences/Optics and photonics/Applied optics/Integrated optics Physical sciences/Optics and photonics/Applied optics/Optoelectronic devices and components optical wireless communication (OWC) optical phased array (OPA) laser beam steering thin-film lithium niobate (TFLN) Full Text Additional Declarations There is NO Competing Interest. Supplementary Files Supplementaryinformation.pdf Supplementary information SupplementaryMovieS2.mp4 Supplementary Movie S2 SupplementaryMovieS1.mp4 Supplementary Movie S1 Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 15 Dec, 2025 Read the published version in Nature Communications → Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7608159","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":523106053,"identity":"3ab600e1-2052-4f0c-8f5c-8a333a58fcbe","order_by":0,"name":"Yonghui 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(TFLN)","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7608159/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7608159/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eOptical wireless communication (OWC) utilizes the high monochromaticity, coherence, and directivity of laser beams to establish low-latency, high-capacity directional links. This approach effectively addresses challenges such as radio spectrum scarcity and signal attenuation. A major advance in this field comes from the incorporation of optical phased arrays (OPAs), which enable inertial-free, high-speed beam steering with transformative potential for mobile access, satellite communications, and emergency networks. In this contribution, we propose and demonstrate a multi-target and ultra-high-speed OWC system based on a thin-film lithium niobate (TFLN) OPA. The system achieves high-resolution beam steering across a wide field of view (FOV) with a sidelobe suppression ratio (SLSR) as low as \u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;13.6 dB. It supports picosecond-order beam steering and highly efficient modulation at a power consumption of only 8.73 pJ/π, and enables real-time multi-target connection without mechanical components or lenses. Notably, this system can achieve OWC with a single-channel communication data rate of up to 320 Gbps in the modulation format of 16-Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM), significantly exceeding the peak capabilities of 5G and current 6G proposals. System performance is further validated through the stable transmission of uncompressed high-definition video. This work establishes a new paradigm for fully solid-state, chip-scale OWC systems, combining unprecedented single-channel data throughput with dynamic multi-target support. It also provides a platform directly compatible with next-generation wireless networks.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Multi-target and ultra-high-speed optical wireless communication using a thin-film lithium niobate optical phased array","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2025-10-03 13:53:54","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7608159/v1","editorialEvents":[],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"nature-communications","isNatureJournal":true,"hasQc":false,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"NCOMMS","sideBox":"Learn more about [Nature Communications](http://www.nature.com/ncomms/)","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"https://mts-ncomms.nature.com/","title":"Nature Communications","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"ejp","reportingPortfolio":"Nature Communications","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"f1d8b3d1-f13b-42a6-bf47-89f853381039","owner":[],"postedDate":"October 3rd, 2025","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"published-in-journal","subjectAreas":[{"id":55605124,"name":"Physical sciences/Optics and photonics/Applied optics/Integrated optics"},{"id":55605125,"name":"Physical sciences/Optics and photonics/Applied optics/Optoelectronic devices and components"}],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-01-29T08:08:00+00:00","versionOfRecord":{"articleIdentity":"rs-7608159","link":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-67696-3","journal":{"identity":"nature-communications","isVorOnly":false,"title":"Nature Communications"},"publishedOn":"2025-12-15 05:00:00","publishedOnDateReadable":"December 15th, 2025"},"versionCreatedAt":"2025-10-03 13:53:54","video":"","vorDoi":"10.1038/s41467-025-67696-3","vorDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-67696-3","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-7608159","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-7608159","identity":"rs-7608159","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"8U1c8b4HqxoKbykW_rLl7","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}