Survey of next-generation optical wireless communication technologies for 6G and Beyond 6G

Demand for high-speed services has surged. The increasing congestion in the radio frequency system, which ranges from 3 kHz to 300 GHz, threatens the growth of next-generation wireless technologies. Despite advancements in signal processing and dedicated modulation techniques, accommodating users’ growing demands with current frequency bands will be a formidable challenge in the coming decades. However, an unlicensed spectrum could potentially offer data rates from 10 Gbps to Tbps for communication systems in the future. Optical Wireless Communication (OWC) technologies can address the limitations in communication bandwidth associated with traditional radio frequency systems. This survey paper provides an overview of the technology and reviews optical wireless communication technologies related to 6 G and beyond 6 G systems. We examine the key technologies essential for OWC and outline the latest developments in areas such as classification, spectrum usage, system architectures, and applications. IEEE 802.15.7 standardization is also discussed in this survey paper, along with some experimental results to highlight the impact of Deep Learning on OWC system. Additionally, we discuss future research challenges for OWC systems.