Spatial channel model for underwater wireless optical communication links

Abstract

In underwater wireless optical communication (UWOC) links, the scattering effect causes both temporal and spatial spread of optical beam, which degrades the received intensity and system performance. The spatial spread has been modeled by some prior works, however, these models are complex for calculation and performance evaluation. In this work, we present a simple closed-form expression to model the spatial distribution of scattered photons captured by the fixed receiver plane. Numerical results suggest that the proposed model fits well with Monte Carlo simulations in turbid coastal and harbor water.