T15 – Towards Resilient and Intelligent Optical Wireless Communication: From Outdoor Free-Space Optics to Indoor LiFi
Co-presenter: Majid Safari, University of Edinburgh, UK
Co-presenter: Hanaa Abumarshoud, University of Edinburgh, UK
Abstract: Optical wireless communication (OWC) has gained strong attention as a complement to conventional radio frequency (RF) communications, offering vast unlicensed spectrum, inherent security, EMI immunity, and ultra-high data rates. Advances in light sources and photodetectors have accelerated its progress, with free-space optical (FSO) communication emerging for outdoor backhaul/long distance links and visible light communication (VLC)/LiFi for secure, high-capacity indoor access. This tutorial will introduce OWC fundamentals, then cover FSO and LiFi systems with emphasis on channel models, transceiver design, and performance analysis. It will also address the integration of intelligent reconfigurable surfaces (IRS) into LiFi networks, highlighting enhanced coverage, security, and advanced multiple access. Finally, the tutorial will discuss optical localisation for integrated sensing and communications (ISAC) which extends OWC into human- and environment aware networks. By linking fundamentals with emerging advances, the tutorial shows how OWC can evolve into intelligent, scalable, and secure enablers for 6G and beyond.
Co-presenter’s Bios:
Majid Safari:
Prof Majid Safari is currently a Professor of Optical and Wireless Communications and the Deputy Head of the Institute for Imaging, Data, and Communications (IDCOM) at the University of Edinburgh. Before joining the University of Edinburgh, he was a Postdoctoral Fellow at McMaster University, Canada, from 2011 to 2013. He received his PhD in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Waterloo, Canada, in 2011. Prof Safari’s main research interests include the application of optics, information theory, and signal processing in optical, wireless, and quantum communications.
Prof Safari is an internationally leading researcher in OWC, with more than 150 publications, including 15 invited papers/book chapters, and over 6,000 citations. He is a recipient of the Mitacs Fellowship (Canada) and prestigious grants from the Leverhulme Trust and EPSRC (UK), as well as the Horizon Europe programme. His pioneering work on the application of photon-counting receivers in OWC demonstrated a record data rate of 10 Gbps in 2023. He was also recognised, for his earlier work on MIMO/relay-assisted FSO communications, as an “Emerging Leader” by the Journal of Optics in 2018. His recent innovations in the design of ultra-high-speed mobile OWC systems have received Best Paper Awards from IEEE GLOBECOM 2022, IEEE ICC 2023, and IEEE WCNC 2025.
Prof Safari is currently a Senior Member of the IEEE and was an Associate Editor for IEEE Transactions on Communications from 2019 to 2024. He was also an Associate Editor for IEEE Communications Letters from 2015 to 2019 and a Guest Editor for IEEE Access and Elsevier Physical Communications in 2017. He served as the TPC co-chair of the 4th Workshop on Optical Wireless Communication in 2015 and the OWC workshops at IEEE WCNC 2023 and IEEE GLOBECOM 2024. He has also served as a TPC member for several symposia in IEEE flagship conferences, including ICC 2017–2025 (ONS and CT symposia and/or OWC workshop), GLOBECOM 2019–2024 (ONS symposium), PIMRC, and WCNC.
Hanaa Abumarshoud:
Dr Hanaa Abumarshoud is an Assistant Professor in the James Watt School of Engineering at the University of Glasgow, UK. Prior to this, she was a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the LiFi Research and Development Centre at the University of Strathclyde (2020–2022) and the University of Edinburgh (2017–2020). She received her MSc and PhD in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Khalifa University, UAE, in 2013 and 2017, respectively. Her cutting-edge research focuses on the design of intelligent LiFi systems, applying information theory and signal processing techniques to address fundamental challenges in visible light communications. The ambition of her work is to develop energy-efficient, scalable, and cost-effective light-based connectivity solutions that transform the way humans and intelligent environments interact through light. She was awarded the highly competitive EPSRC New Investigator Award (NIA), securing over £550K to pioneer the next generation of intelligent LiFi systems.
Dr Abumarshoud was endorsed as a “Global Talent” by the Royal Academy of Engineering in the UK in 2022 and was named among the “100 Brilliant and Inspiring Women in 6G” by the Women in 6G community for three years in a row (2024-2026) for her contributions to the field. She is a Senior Member of IEEE and served as an Associate Editor for IEEE Communications Letters (2022-2024). She regularly contributes as an Organising Committee Member for flagship conferences, organises and chairs technical workshops, and serves as a reviewer for leading international journals and conferences within IEEE, the Royal Society, and the Optical Society. She received the IEEE TAOS Best Paper Award in 2022.