Optical Filter-Less WDM for Visible Light Communications Using Defocused MIMO

This paper experimentally investigates, for the first time, a new wavelength-division multiplexing-based visible light communications link based on a defocused non-imaging multipleinput multiple-output (MIMO), which removes the need for tuned optical bandpass filters paired with each receiver. The proposed system is based on using the natural diversity of the individual light emitting diodes (LEDs) within a single light source to generate an H-matrix, which is independent of spatial diversity. We show that, by transmitting K-independent sets of non-return to zero on-and-off keying signals on separate wavelengths, the received superposed symbols can be demultiplexed. The non-imaging MIMO diversity is achieved by considering the power-current characteristics of the light emitting diode, the responsivity of the photodetector array, and the defocused beam spot. The system is empirically verified for K = 3 using red, green, and blue LEDs with Q-factors of 7.66, 7.69, and 4.75 dB, respectively.