Sum Rate Maximization for NOMA-Based VLC With Optical Intelligent Reflecting Surface

Abstract

Intelligent reflecting surface (IRS) is a novel technology that provides new research perspectives for wireless communications due to its capability of redesigning the wireless electromagnetic environment. In this letter, we investigate the OIRS-aided VLC system employing the power-domain non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA), where the achievable sum rate is maximized via optimizing the optical IRS (OIRS) reflection matrix. By describing the OIRS attributes in terms of an association matrix, we transform the OIRS optimization problem into a binary programming problem and iteratively optimize the OIRS passive beamforming by the proposed low-complexity algorithm. Simulation results show that the OIRS improves the achievable sum rate of the NOMA-based VLC system and the proposed algorithm is superior to other baseline schemes.