Channel Characterization of IRS-Assisted Resonant Beam Communication Systems

To meet the growing demand for data traffic, spectrum-rich optical wireless communication (OWC) has emerged as a key technological driver for the development of 6G. The resonant beam communication (RBC) system, which employs spatially separated laser cavities as the transmitter and receiver, is a high-speed OWC technology capable of self-alignment without tracking. However, its transmission through the air is susceptible to losses caused by obstructions. In this paper, we propose an intelligent reflecting surface (IRS) assisted RBC system with the optical frequency doubling method, where the resonant beam in frequency-fundamental and frequency-doubled is transmitted through both direct line-of-sight (LoS) and IRS-assisted channels to maintain steady-state oscillation and enable communication without echo-interference, respectively. Then, we establish the channel model based on Fresnel diffraction theory under the near-field optical propagation to analyze the transmission loss and frequency-doubled power analytically. Furthermore, communication power can be maximized in real-time by dynamically controlling the beam-splitting ratio between the two channels according to the varying loss levels encountered over air. Numerical results validate that the IRS-assisted channel can compensate for the losses in the obstructed LoS channel and misaligned receivers, ensuring that communication performance reaches an optimal value with dynamic ratio adjustments.