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

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.