Joint Sensing and Power Transfer via Distributed Coupled-Cavity Lasers

Positioning and power transfer are crucial demands in the existing Internet of Things networks, where intracavity laser-based systems are proposed as a potential alternative for providing sufficient wireless power and high-accuracy positioning simultaneously. However, existing intracavity laser-based systems still face challenges in improving power transfer efficiency and system Field of View (FoV). This article proposes a joint sensing and power transfer (JSPT) system based on distributed coupled-cavity laser (DCCL) design. Power efficiency and FoV are enhanced owing to the external-cavity feedback in DCCL. The angle of arrival estimation based on the intrinsic self-alignment feature and polarization self-modulation ranging based on the self-mixing feature are achieved in the DCCL-based JSPT system. Moreover, we build analytical models for revealing the principle of DCCL and verifying the system performance relying on diffraction propagation-based beam field simulation and rate equation-based gain simulation. Numerical results demonstrate that DCCL-based JSPT achieves 4-W charging power and mm-level 3-D positioning within an FoV of ±40° and 2-m vertical distances, showing its capability for Internet of Things applications.