In today’s connected world, wireless data has become a critical utility: an invisible element of our modern infrastructure that increasingly underpins many of the services upon which we rely.
But there’s a problem. The radio spectrum upon which much of our connectivity depends is getting crowded. Against this backdrop, unlocking new levels of data and bandwidth is a priority, and one area of technology that looks set to play a major role in addressing this challenge is Li-Fi, an emerging wireless optical networking technology that enables data to be transmitted over short distances via the rapid and imperceptible (to the human eye) modulation of LED light bulbs.
What’s more, because data can be contained within a tight area of illumination, there’s little risk of interference and it’s also highly secure. While radio waves penetrate through walls and can be intercepted, a beam of light is confined.
Last month the Optimist Daily featured an article about LiFi coming to Air France flights, but many in this burgeoning industry, expected to be worth $75.5bn by 2023, are now working to bring this innovative tech to the marketplace and put new meaning into the word “illumination”.
