Performance of optical spatial modulation and spatial multiplexing with imaging receiver

Spatial modulation (SM) and spatial multiplexing (SMP) are two multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) techniques for transmitting data over an indoor optical wireless channel. Receivers for SM and SMP can be of the non-imaging type, in which case the channel matrix coefficients can be highly correlated, or of the imaging type, which can reduce the degree of correlation and improve overall system performance. In this work, we propose a new framework to analyze the performance of imaging MIMO systems. This framework is applied to characterize the performance of SM and SMP under both imaging and non-imaging receivers. Results of our analysis indicate that imaging receivers can provide significant signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) improvements up to 45dB under SM and SMP as compared to the use of non-imaging receivers. Finally, the application of the proposed analysis framework indicates specific design principles to optimize imaging receiver parameters.