Automatic Attenuation Control for Mitigating Photon-Counting Saturation in SPAD-based Optical Wireless Communications
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arXiv
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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| Format: | Preprint |
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2026
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| _version_ | 1866913166262272000 |
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| author | Wang, Chen Xu, Zhiyong Wang, Jingyuan Li, Jianhua Mou, Weifeng Zhu, Huatao |
| author_facet | Wang, Chen Xu, Zhiyong Wang, Jingyuan Li, Jianhua Mou, Weifeng Zhu, Huatao |
| contents | Single-photon avalanche diodes (SPADs) have emerged as a promising candidate for optical wireless communication (OWC) owing to their ultra-high sensitivity and singlephoton detection capability. However, under strong background radiation or high signal power, SPAD-based receivers suffer from photon-counting saturation, which severely degrades communication performance. To address this challenge, this paper introduces an automatic attenuation control (AAC) technique that dynamically optimizes the incident optical intensity to mitigate saturation effects. We develop a comprehensive analytical model for the SPAD-based OWC system, incorporating the influence of dead time and the lack of photon-number resolution. Based on this model, a convex optimization-based AAC algorithm is proposed to maximize the achievable rate in real time. Furthermore, a low-complexity AAC algorithm is devised using a closed-form trigger probability criterion, reducing computational complexity by two orders of magnitude. Numerical results demonstrate that the proposed AAC technique significantly improves both the achievable rate and symbol error rate across a wide range of background conditions, providing an efficient solution to enhance the dynamic range of photon-counting receivers. |
| format | Preprint |
| id |
arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2605_27798 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2026 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | Automatic Attenuation Control for Mitigating Photon-Counting Saturation in SPAD-based Optical Wireless Communications Wang, Chen Xu, Zhiyong Wang, Jingyuan Li, Jianhua Mou, Weifeng Zhu, Huatao Signal Processing Optics Single-photon avalanche diodes (SPADs) have emerged as a promising candidate for optical wireless communication (OWC) owing to their ultra-high sensitivity and singlephoton detection capability. However, under strong background radiation or high signal power, SPAD-based receivers suffer from photon-counting saturation, which severely degrades communication performance. To address this challenge, this paper introduces an automatic attenuation control (AAC) technique that dynamically optimizes the incident optical intensity to mitigate saturation effects. We develop a comprehensive analytical model for the SPAD-based OWC system, incorporating the influence of dead time and the lack of photon-number resolution. Based on this model, a convex optimization-based AAC algorithm is proposed to maximize the achievable rate in real time. Furthermore, a low-complexity AAC algorithm is devised using a closed-form trigger probability criterion, reducing computational complexity by two orders of magnitude. Numerical results demonstrate that the proposed AAC technique significantly improves both the achievable rate and symbol error rate across a wide range of background conditions, providing an efficient solution to enhance the dynamic range of photon-counting receivers. |
| title | Automatic Attenuation Control for Mitigating Photon-Counting Saturation in SPAD-based Optical Wireless Communications |
| topic | Signal Processing Optics |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2605.27798 |