Unjammable and Resilient Communications for UAV Swarms: A Hybrid FSO/mmWave Approach
Eslami, Ali
Eslami, Ali
Authors
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Location
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Advisors
Original Date
Digitization Date
Issue Date
2025-03-30
Type
Conference paper
Genre
Keywords
Hybrid FSO/RF systems,UAV swarms,Unjammable communications
Subjects (LCSH)
Citation
A. Eslami, "Unjammable and Resilient Communications for UAV Swarms: A Hybrid FSO/mmWave Approach," 2025 Global Congress on Emerging Technologies (GCET), Lyon, France, 2025, pp. 191-194, doi: 10.1109/GCET68529.2025.11450673.
Abstract
Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) swarms require resilient, secure, and high-bandwidth communication to operate effectively in contested or GPS-denied environments. Traditional radio frequency (RF) links are susceptible to jamming and interception, while Free-Space Optical (FSO) communication, though secure, is vulnerable to atmospheric conditions and alignment challenges. This paper presents a novel hybrid communication architecture that combines FSO and 60 GHz millimeter-wave (mmWave) RF technologies to create a robust and unjammable network for UAV swarms. Our approach introduces several innovations, including a dual-mode optical system (heliograph and active laser) for 24-hour operation, MEMS-based beam steering for improved LPI/LPD, a cross-layer protocol stack that performs link-aware routing across both optical and RF channels, and a cooperative localization framework for GPS-denied navigation. We detail the system's architecture, the methodology for its design and prototyping, and present preliminary results from an FPGA-based FSO testbed that validates the feasibility of high-speed Pulse Position Modulation (PPM). The proposed system provides a pathway toward achieving secure, high-capacity, and continuous communication for next-generation autonomous systems. © 2025 IEEE.
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Publisher
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.
Journal
2025 Global Congress on Emerging Technologies, GCET 2025
Book Title
Series
2025 Global Congress on Emerging Technologies, GCET 2025
2 December 2025 through 5 December 2025
Lyon
221972
2 December 2025 through 5 December 2025
Lyon
221972