6 things to know about Li-fi technology   Technology and innovation are two major aspects that develop our world at every ticking moment. Ever since technology gained major importance in our society, there has been an increasing need to develop better technological gadgets that far outsmart the existing ones. However, with the emergence of the World Wide Web or the Internet, things have become even more interesting. Every single instance can be credited to the inception of a new idea in the creative minds of thinkers all around the globe. 

The concept of Wireless Fidelity which commonly goes by the name of Wi-Fi has indefinitely changed the way information is distributed across devices. But in the recent past, another radical breakthrough in technology is making us rethink the meaning of possibility, and that is undoubtedly the Li-fi technology.   

Li-fi stands for Light Fidelity which was a term coined by the Edinburgh professor Harald Haas. It is a method of network wireless communication quite similar to the Wi-Fi in principle. But unlike Wi-Fi which uses radio wave signals to transmit data with several shortcomings, the Li-fi is an extraordinary piece of ‘high techie-techie’ that uses visible light or ultraviolet rays to transmit information with great speeds.   

Mostly using light emitting diodes or LEDs pulsating at a very high frequency quite impossible for the human eye to capture this technology is a component of a broader field of technology called Optical Wireless Communications (OWC). Unlike the other traditional methods of transmission of data, Li-fi is quite popular for being one of the most efficient yet profitable ways of data transmission. It is speculated that within the next few years, Li-fi will replace most other data transmission methods to become the cheapest and the fastest way to access the Internet. 

Here are a few things that you need to know about Li-fi technology in order to understand its true significance and to appreciate its importance.  

1. Internet connection using Li-fi technology could reach speeds of 100 Gbps:

As its objective suggests, Li-fi is best known for its ability to transmit data in great speeds. Even though the maximum speed using LED Li-fi technology exist around a 10 to 20 Gbps range, using a laser instead of an LED can boost up the speed to about 100 Gbps. This speed can be good enough to download several high definition movies in a second although it would take the same time to watch the downloaded movie as it is the Li-fi  that is fast, and not us. This is at least 100 times faster than a conventional Wi-Fi connection. 

2. Li-fi technology could be the cheapest source of Internet:

An affordable internet connection is something that we all desire. An Internet connection with a better download speed is an added benefit. But it is very difficult to integrate both these properties in any of the existing technologies. But, speculations suggest that along with its enormous speed, Li-fi will also be quite affordable thanks to the easy and cost-effective construction of its components. It is also are quite popular fact that LED illumination consumes very little power and is therefore very efficient unlike the radio signal transmitter in the Wi-Fi. 

3.  Solar cells can be used as broadband Li-fi receivers:

One of the most interesting speculations made by the most popular person associated with this technology, Prof. Harald Haas is that the already existing solar cells can be used to act as a broadband receiver from exclusive laser stations established on raised landmarks or even from lamp posts which can be used to transmit data. This adds up to this list one of the most interesting facts, as nobody would have imagined that solar panels will one day be used to transmit the fastest packets of data.

4. Internet connections depending upon Li-fi are difficult to hack:

One of the major advantages of using visible light as a method of data transmission is its inability to easily penetrate through walls or doors. This is especially because of the very small wavelength of visible light with respect to radio waves. Therefore, except for a few transparent materials like windows, it is almost impossible to make use of the Li-fi broadband signal outside a confined room. Even though this might be a big blow to the coverage radius, it is rather better to have a safe network connection than a compromised one with larger coverage.

5. Li-fi might one day lead to safer traffic:

Road accidents are usually caused due to the inability of a human driver to assess complex traffic situations. A lot of concepts including the laser headlights of the BMW i8 are live proof for the fact that Li-fi technology might be used to make cars more self-sufficient so that they can evade dangerous situations themselves using communicating headlights running on variants of Li-fi technology.   

6. Li-fi technology has one of the simplest setup of components:

Unlike most new concepts of technology like optical character recognition, speech detection and laser trapping which need a complex set of algorithms and components to work at their best, Li-fi technology is one such marvel that sounds a lot like Sci-Fi. It is very hard to believe that using very fast flickering light bulbs, one can get the most efficient and advanced broadband connections in the world. The other components of the Li-fi technology too are not that complicated when compared to most other recent innovations.    

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Image source:

1) https://commons.wikimedia.org

2) https://ko.wikipedia.org

3) http://sustainableenergygroup.org/

4) https://pixabay.com/en/security-protection-anti-virus-265130/

5) https://pixabay.com/en/steering-wheel-car-drive-driving-801994/

6) http://commons.wikimedia.org