Li-Fi, as coined by Prof. Harald Haas during his TED Global talk,[!

is
bidirectional, high s"eed and fully net#orked #ireless co$$unications, like
%i-Fi, using &isible light. Li-Fi is a subset of &isible light co$$unications '(L)*
and can be a co$"le$ent to +F co$$unication '%i-Fi or )ellular net#ork*, or
a re"lace$ent in conte,ts of data broadcasting.
-t is #ireless and uses &isible light co$$unication 'instead of radio fre.uency
#a&es*, that is "art of the /"tical %ireless )o$$unications technologies,
#hich carries $uch $ore infor$ation, and has been "ro"osed as a solution to
the +F-band#idth li$itations.[0! 1 co$"lete solution includes an industry led
standardi2ation "rocess.-t is a 3G[4! &isible light co$$unication syste$ that
uses light fro$ light-e$itting diodes 'LEDs* as a $ediu$ to deli&er
net#orked, $obile, high-s"eed co$$unication in a si$ilar $anner as %i-Fi.
[5! Li-Fi could lead to the -nternet of Things, #hich is e&erything electronic
being connected to the internet, #ith the LED lights on the electronics being
used as Li-Fi internet access "oints.[3! The Li-Fi $arket is "ro6ected to ha&e a
co$"ound annual gro#th rate of 708 fro$ 094 to 097 and to be #orth
o&er :; billion "er year by 097.[;!
(isible light co$$unications '(L)* #orks by s#itching bulbs on and o< #ithin
nanoseconds,[=! #hich is too .uickly to be noticed by the hu$an eye.
1lthough Li-Fi bulbs #ould ha&e to be ke"t on to trans$it data, the bulbs
could be di$$ed to the "oint that they #ere not &isible to hu$ans and yet
still functional.[7! The light #a&es cannot "enetrate #alls #hich $akes a
$uch shorter range, though $ore secure fro$ hacking, relati&e to %i-Fi.[>!
[9! Direct line of sight isn?t necessary for Li-Fi to trans$it a signal@ light
reAected o< the #alls can achie&e =9 BbitCs.[![0!
Li-Fi has the ad&antage of being useful in electro$agnetic sensiti&e areas
such as in aircraft cabins, hos"itals and nuclear "o#er "lants[citation needed!
#ithout causing electro$agnetic interference.[>![9! Doth %i-Fi and Li-Fi
trans$it data o&er the electro$agnetic s"ectru$, but #hereas %i-Fi utilises
radio #a&es, Li-Fi uses &isible light. %hile the EF Federal )o$$unications
)o$$ission has #arned of a "otential s"ectru$ crisis because %i-Fi is close
to full ca"acity, Li-Fi has al$ost no li$itations on ca"acity.[4! The &isible
light s"ectru$ is 9,999 ti$es larger than the entire radio fre.uency
s"ectru$.[5! +esearchers ha&e reached data rates of o&er 9 GbitCs, #hich
is $ore than 039 ti$es faster than su"erfast broadband.[3![;! Li-Fi is
e,"ected to be ten ti$es chea"er than %i-Fi.[7! Fhort range, lo# reliability
and high installation costs are the "otential do#nsides.[;![=!
PureLiFi de$onstrated the Grst co$$ercially a&ailable Li-Fi syste$, the Li-st,
at the 095 Bobile %orld )ongress in Darcelona.[=!
History[edit!
Prof. Harald Haas
Professor Harald Haas, fro$ the Eni&ersity of Edinburgh in the EH, is #idely
recognised as the original founder of Li-Fi. He coined the ter$ Li-Fi and is
)hair of Bobile )o$$unications at the Eni&ersity of Edinburgh and co-
founder of "ureLiFi.[4!
The general ter$ &isible light co$$unication '(L)*, includes any use of the
&isible light "ortion of the electro$agnetic s"ectru$ to trans$it infor$ation.
The D-Light "ro6ect at Edinburgh?s -nstitute for Digital )o$$unications #as
funded fro$ Ianuary 099 to Ianuary 090.[7! Haas "ro$oted this
technology in his 09 TED Global talk and hel"ed start a co$"any to $arket
it.[>! PureLiFi, for$erly "ure(L), is an original e.ui"$ent $anufacturer
'/EB* Gr$ set u" to co$$erciali2e Li-Fi "roducts for integration #ith e,isting
LED-lighting syste$s.[09![0!
-n /ctober 09, co$"anies and industry grou"s for$ed the Li-Fi )onsortiu$,
to "ro$ote high-s"eed o"tical #ireless syste$s and to o&erco$e the li$ited
a$ount of radio-based #ireless s"ectru$ a&ailable by e,"loiting a co$"letely
di<erent "art of the electro$agnetic s"ectru$.[00! 1 nu$ber of co$"anies
o<er uni-directional (L) "roducts #hich is not the sa$e as Li-Fi.
(L) technology #as e,hibited in 090 using Li-Fi.[04! Dy 1ugust 094, data
rates of o&er .; GbitCs #ere de$onstrated o&er a single color LED.[05! -n
Fe"te$ber 094, a "ress release said that Li-Fi, or (L) syste$s in general, do
not re.uire line-of-sight conditions.[03! -n /ctober 094, it #as re"orted
)hinese $anufacturers #ere #orking on Li-Fi de&elo"$ent kits.[0;!
-n 1"ril 095, the +ussian co$"any Ftins )o$an announced the de&elo"$ent
of a Li-Fi #ireless local net#ork called Dea$)aster. Their current $odule
transfers data at .03 gigabytes "er second but foresee boosting s"eeds u"
to 3 GDCsecond in the near future.[0=!
Ftandards[edit!
Like %i-Fi, LiFi is #ireless and uses si$ilar 790. "rotocols@ but it uses &isible
light co$$unication 'instead of radio fre.uency #a&es*, #hich has $uch-
#ider band#idth..
/ne "art of (L) is $odeled after co$$unication "rotocols established by the
-EEE 790 #orkgrou". Ho#e&er, the -EEE 790.3.= standard is out-of-date.
F"eciGcally, the standard fails to consider the latest technological
de&elo"$ents in the Geld of o"tical #ireless co$$unications, s"eciGcally
#ith the introduction of o"tical orthogonal fre.uency-di&ision $ulti"le,ing '/-
/FDB* $odulation $ethods #hich ha&e been o"ti$i2ed for data rates,
$ulti"le-access and energy eJciency.[07! The introduction of /-/FDB $eans
that a ne# dri&e for standardi2ation of o"tical #ireless co$$unications is
re.uired.
Konetheless, the -EEE 790.3.= standard deGnes the "hysical layer 'PHL* and
$edia access control 'B1)* layer. The standard is able to deli&er enough data
rates to trans$it audio, &ideo and $ulti$edia ser&ices. -t takes into account
o"tical trans$ission $obility, its co$"atibility #ith artiGcial lighting "resent
in infrastructures, and the interference #hich $ay be generated by a$bient
lighting. The B1) layer "er$its using the link #ith the other layers as #ith
the T)PC-P "rotocol.[citation needed!
The standard deGnes three PHL layers #ith di<erent ratesM
The PHL - #as established for outdoor a""lication and #orks fro$ .;= kbitCs
to 0;=.; kbitCs.
The PHL -- layer "er$its reaching data rates fro$ .03 BbitCs to >; BbitCs.
The PHL --- is used for $any e$issions sources #ith a "articular $odulation
$ethod called color shift keying ')FH*. PHL --- can deli&er rates fro$ 0 BbitCs
to >; BbitCs.[0>!
The $odulation for$ats recogni2ed for PHL - and PHL -- are on-o< keying
'//H* and &ariable "ulse "osition $odulation '(PPB*. The Banchester coding
used for the PHL - and PHL -- layers includes the clock inside the trans$itted
data by re"resenting a logic 9 #ith an //H sy$bol N9N and a logic #ith an
//H sy$bol N9N, all #ith a D) co$"onent. The D) co$"onent a&oids light
e,tinction in case of an e,tended run of logic 9?s.[citation needed!
The Grst (L) s$art"hone "rototy"e #as "resented at the )onsu$er
Electronics Fho# in Las (egas fro$ Ianuary =O9 in 095. The "hone uses
FunPartner?s %ysi"s )/KKE)T, a techni.ue that con&erts light #a&es into
usable energy, $aking the "hone ca"able of recei&ing and decoding signals
#ithout dra#ing on its battery.[49![4! 1 clear thin layer of crystal glass can
be added to s$all screens like #atches and s$art"hones that $ake the$
solar "o#ered. F$art"hones could gain 38 $ore battery life during a
ty"ical day. This Grst s$art"hones using this technology should arri&e in
093. This screen can also recei&e (L) signals as #ell as the s$art"hone
ca$era.[40! The cost of these screens "er s$art"hone is bet#een :0 and :4,
$uch chea"er than $ost ne# technology.[44!
Phili"s lighting co$"any has de&elo"ed a (L) syste$ for sho""ers at stores.
They ha&e to do#nload an a"" on their s$art"hone and then their
s$art"hone #orks #ith the LEDs in the store. The LEDs can "in"oint #here
they are located in the store and gi&e the$ corres"onding cou"ons and
infor$ation based on #hich aisle they are on and #hat they are looking at.
[45!