Utility of Light Emitting Diodes for inter-satellite communication in multi-satellite networks

Future space missions will be designed to take advantage of multi-satellite network deployment because of their potential for providing improved spatial and temporal resolutions of a target and/or can provide a more comprehensive observation of the Earth. To enable interoperability within this satellite network particularly for autanomous operations and provide on-orbit data handling through distributed processing, a reliable inter-satellite communication (ISC) is required. In this paper, we examine the suitability of Light-Emitting Diodes (LEDs) for ISC in multi-satellite networks, and further propose an approach of the physical layer design that meets the requirements of the platform in terms of the size, weight and power (SWaP) of the satellite. An analytical model of the ISL is developed to test feasibility of using LEDs for reliable data communication in the presence of steady solar background illumination. Finally, the performance of the ISL is evaluated in terms of the Bit Error Rate (BER) and achievable data rates for four different intensity modulation and direct detection (IM/DD) schemes.