Target Acquisition for Collimation System of Wireless Quantum Communication Networks in Low Visibility

In severe low-visibility environments full of smoke, because of the performance degeneration of the near-infrared (NIR) collimation system of quantum drones communication networks, the improved dual-threshold method based on trend line analysis for long-wave infrared (LWIR) quantum cascade lasers (QCLs) is proposed, to achieve target acquisition. The simulation results show that smoke-scattering noise is a steeply varying medium–high-frequency modulation. At particle sizes less than 4 [Formula: see text] m, the traditional dual-threshold method can effectively distinguish the target information from the smoke noise, which is the advantage of the LWIR laser compared to the NIR laser. For detecting lasers with high signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs), the method can achieve good target acquisition, by setting reasonable conventional thresholds, such as 0.7 times the peak intensity and 0.8 times the peak rising velocity. At low SNRs and steep intensity variation, the method can also achieve good target acquisition, by adaptively resetting new thresholds after filtering the detecting laser, such as 0.6 times the peak intensity and 0.6 times the peak rising velocity. The results of this paper will provide a reference for the performance improvement and refinement of the collimation system for wireless quantum communication networks in low visibility.