Abstract: An electronic device may include a receiver having a light source that provides an optical signal to an optical splitter. An optical combiner may be coupled to the optical splitter over a set of parallel optical paths. A phased antenna array may have a set of antennas disposed on the optical paths. Each antenna may include an optical modulator disposed on a respective one of the optical paths and an antenna resonating element coupled to the modulator. Incident radio-frequency signals may produce electrical signals on the antenna resonating elements. Optical phase shifters may provide optical phase shifts to the optical signal. The modulators may modulate the optical local oscillator signal using the electrical signals. The optical combiner may generate a combined signal by combining modulated optical signals from the optical paths. A demodulator may recover wireless data from the radio-frequency signals using the combined signal.

Abstract: An electronic device may include an antenna that conveys wireless signals at frequencies greater than 100 GHz. The antenna may include a radiating element coupled to a uni-travelling-carrier photodiode (UTC PD). An optical path may illuminate the UTC PD using a first optical local oscillator (LO) signal and a second optical LO signal. An optical phase shift may be applied to the first optical LO signal. A Mach-Zehnder modulator (MZM) may be interposed on the optical path. During signal transmission, the MZM may modulate wireless data onto the second optical LO signal while control circuitry applies a first bias voltage to the UTC PD. During signal reception, the control circuitry may apply a second bias voltage to the UTC PD that configures the UTC PD to convert received wireless signals into intermediate frequency signals and/or optical signals.

Abstract: An electronic device may include a photonics-based phased antenna array that conveys wireless signals at frequencies greater than 100 GHz. In a transmit mode, the array may transmit signals using the first and second optical signals. In a receive mode, the array may receive signals using the optical signals. In a passive mode, the array may reflect incident wireless signals as reflected signals. Photodiodes in the array may be controlled to exhibit output impedances that are mismatched with respect to input impedances of radiating elements in the array. Different mismatches can be used across the array or as a function of time to impart different phase and/or frequency shifts on the reflected signals. The phase shifts may be used to encode information into the reflected signals and/or to form a signal beam of the reflected signals.

Abstract: An electronic device may include an optical demultiplexer, optical combiners, optical paths between the demultiplexer and the combiners, modulators on the optical paths, and a symbol generator that generates a set of electrical OFDM symbols. The modulators may generate a set of optical OFDM symbols by mixing optical carriers with the electrical OFDM symbols. The combiners may generate an aggregate optical OFDM symbol from the optical OFDM symbols and may combine the aggregate optical OFDM symbol with an optical local oscillator signal. The aggregate optical OFDM symbol may exhibit a large bandwidth. The combiners may illuminate a photodiode, which produces current on an antenna resonating element that radiates a radio-frequency signal at frequencies greater than 100 GHz.

Abstract: A user equipment (UE) device may communicate with a wireless access point (AP) via reflection off a reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS). The RIS may begin to sweep antenna elements over one or more sets of signal beams beginning at an initial time while reflecting signals transmitted by the AP. The UE may record times at which the UE receives reference signals reflected by the RIS. The UE may select an optimal signal beam of the RIS based on the time periods between the initial time and the times at which the reference signals were received. The UE may inform the AP of the optimal signal beam and the RIS may use the optimal signal beam to reflect wireless data between the AP and the UE. Multiple signal beam sweeps may eliminate uncertainty or ambiguity in signal beam selection associated with timing drift or offsets between the RIS and the UE.

Abstract: An electronic device may include wireless circuitry that conveys radio-frequency signals at frequencies greater than or equal to 100 GHz using first and second optical local oscillator (LO) signals generated by clocking circuitry. The clocking circuitry may include a first laser that generates the first optical LO signal and a second laser that generates the second optical LO signal. First and second self-injection locking loop paths may be coupled around the first and second lasers respectively. The first loop path may include a first mixer, an optical reference, and a second mixer. The second loop path may include a photodiode, the first mixer, and the optical reference. The photodiode may provide a radio-frequency signal to the mixers. The optical reference may include an optical delay line or resonator and may reduce phase noise of optical signals used to self-injection lock the first and second lasers.

Abstract: A wireless access point (AP) may communicate with a user equipment (UE) device via reflection off a reflective device having an array of fixed or adjustable reflectors in different orientations. The AP may illuminate different portions of an area by pointing a signal beam to different reflectors and/or by controlling the reflective device to electrically rotate the reflectors. The AP may calibrate the position of the reflective device and may establish wireless communications with the UE device by performing a sweep of signal beams over the reflectors and/or by controlling the reflective device to sweep over different reflector orientations. The AP may track movement of the UE device over time. The AP may sweep the AP beam over a subset of the reflectors around an active reflector to maintain communications with the UE device even as the UE device moves over time.

Abstract: A controller may map user equipment (UE) devices in a wireless system to access points (AP) and reflective intelligent surfaces (RIS). The controller may generate a corresponding communications schedule based on the locations of the UE device(s), AP(s), and RIS(s) and based on current traffic demands. The controller may control the RIS(s), AP(s), and UE devices to implement the schedule. The schedule may divide the time, frequency, and/or spatial resources of the RIS(s) to meet the traffic demands of the UE devices using a space division multiple access scheme, a time-division multiple access scheme, a frequency-division multiple access scheme, and/or a distributed multiple-input and multiple output scheme. The schedule may be updated over time as needed. The RIS(s) may allow for a reduction in the number of AP(s) required to meet the dynamic demands of the UE devices, thereby minimizing deployment and operating costs.

Abstract: A wireless access point (AP) may communicate with a user equipment (UE) device via reflection off a reflective device having an array of fixed or adjustable reflectors in different orientations. The AP may illuminate different portions of an area by pointing a signal beam to different reflectors and/or by controlling the reflective device to electrically rotate the reflectors. The AP may calibrate the position of the reflective device and may establish wireless communications with the UE device by performing a sweep of signal beams over the reflectors and/or by controlling the reflective device to sweep over different reflector orientations. The AP may track movement of the UE device over time. The AP may sweep the AP beam over a subset of the reflectors around an active reflector to maintain communications with the UE device even as the UE device moves over time.

Abstract: The present application relates to devices and components related to a direct detection and photonics receiver.

Abstract: A first device may generate optical signals of different polarizations. Photodiodes may use the optical signals to transmit wireless signals at different polarizations and at a frequency greater than 100 GHz using the optical signals. A second device may receive the wireless signals and may convert the wireless signals into optical signals. A Stokes vector receiver on the second device may generate Stokes vectors based on the optical signals. Control circuitry on the second device may use the Stokes vectors generated for a series of training data in the wireless signals to generate a rotation matrix that characterizes polarization rotation between the first and second devices. The control circuitry may multiply wireless data in subsequently received wireless signals by the rotation matrix to mitigate the polarization rotation and other transmission impairments while using minimal resources.

Abstract: A user equipment (UE) device may communicate with an access point (AP) at greater than 100 GHz via a reconfigurable intelligent surface. The UE may select tracking beams based on sensor data. The UE may instruct the RIS to sweep over the tracking beams while the UE gathers performance metric data. The UE may identify a serving beam based on the performance metric data. The UE may control the RIS to form the serving beam to reflect wireless data between the AP and the UE. Using the UE to intelligently select tracking beams based on sensor data may greatly reduce the amount of time required to track the UE device as it moves relative to sweeping over all formable signal beams, thereby reducing latency and minimizing disruptions in wireless data transfer between the UE device and the AP.

Abstract: A user equipment (UE) device may communicate with an access point (AP) at greater than 100 GHz via a reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS). The AP may perform a control RAT discovery with the RIS and then a data transfer RAT discovery, during which the AP uses the control RAT to control the RIS to sweep over different RIS beams. The AP may transmit radar waveforms while concurrently sweeping over different AP beams. The AP may gather performance metric values from the radar waveforms after reflection off the RIS during the sweep. The AP may identify an optimal RIS beam that produced the best performance metric values. The AP may use the optimal RIS beam to identify the orientation of the RIS, which the AP may use to select AP and/or RIS beams for conveying wireless data between the AP and the UE via the RIS.

Abstract: A user equipment (UE) device may communicate with a wireless access point (AP) using wireless signals transmitted using a data radio access technology (RAT) via reflection off a reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) at frequencies greater than about 100 GHz. A control RAT may be used to convey control signals between the AP, UE device, and RIS. The control signals and the control RAT and the data transfer RAT may split procedures used to perform discovery, to establish an initial configuration of the UE device, AP, and/or RIS, and to update the configuration of the UE device, the AP, and/or the RIS while tracking the UE device over time. The control RAT may allow for control operations without requiring line-of-sight and may allow the RIS to minimize its power consumption and cost.

Abstract: An electronic device may include clocking circuitry with primary and secondary lasers that generate first and second optical local oscillator (LO) signals. A phase-locked loop (PLL) may tune the secondary laser based to phase lock the first and second optical LO signals. A self-injection locking loop path may couple an output of the secondary laser to its input. The self-injection locking loop path may include a first mixer and a second mixer. The first mixer may generate a beat signal using the first and second optical LO signals. The second mixer may generate a self-injection locking signal based on the first optical LO signal and the beat signal. A delay line or optical resonator may iteratively self-inject the self-injection locking signal onto the secondary laser. This may serve to minimize phase noise and jitter of the optical LO signals.

Abstract: An electronic device may include wireless circuitry with light sources, a set of photodiodes, a resonating element, and a common gate amplifier (CGA). In a transmit mode, the photodiodes may use optical local oscillators to generate equal portions of an antenna current amplified by the CGA for transmission by the resonating element. In a receive mode, the resonating element may generate an antenna current which is amplified by the amplifier and passed to the photodiodes. Including multiple photodiodes coupled to the amplifier in a current sharing configuration may serve to boost power. The amplifier may exhibit a wide bandwidth, may perform impedance matching between the resonating element and the photodiodes, and may isolate the photodiodes from antenna mismatch. The antenna may be integrated into a phased antenna array to further boost power.

Abstract: A first device may generate optical signals of different polarizations. Photodiodes may use the optical signals to transmit wireless signals at different polarizations and at a frequency greater than 100 GHz using the optical signals. A second device may receive the wireless signals and may convert the wireless signals into optical signals. A Stokes vector receiver on the second device may generate Stokes vectors based on the optical signals. Control circuitry on the second device may use the Stokes vectors generated for a series of training data in the wireless signals to generate a rotation matrix that characterizes polarization rotation between the first and second devices. The control circuitry may multiply wireless data in subsequently received wireless signals by the rotation matrix to mitigate the polarization rotation and other transmission impairments while using minimal resources.

Abstract: A communication system may an optical signal generator and a signal path. The generator may generate one or more optical local oscillator (LO) signals and an optical frequency comb. Optical paths and an optical demultiplexer may distribute the optical LO signal(s) and the frequency comb to photodiodes in one or more access points. The photodiodes may be coupled to antenna radiating elements. The optical paths may illuminate each photodiode using a signal pair that includes one of the optical LO signals and one of the carriers from the frequency comb. The photodiodes may convey wireless signals using the antenna radiating elements at frequencies given by the differences in frequency between the signals in the signal pairs. The radiating elements may concurrently convey the wireless signals with different external devices at different frequencies, with different devices at the same frequency, and/or with the same device at the same frequency.

Abstract: A wireless system may include a central processor and an access point. The central processor may generate an optical signal on an optical fiber. The optical signal may include an optical local oscillator (LO) signal and one or more carriers. The central processor may modulate different combinations of transverse optical modes, orbital angular momentum, polarization, and/or carrier frequency of the optical signal to concurrently convey respective wireless data streams. The orthogonality of the transverse optical modes, orbital angular momentum, polarization, and carrier frequency may allow many wireless data streams to be modulated onto the optical signal and concurrently transmitted and propagated on the optical fiber independent of each other for transmission to one or more external devices.

Abstract: The present application relates to devices and components related to a direct detection and photonics receiver.