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Journal of Lightwave Technology

Channel-Dependent Error Control With DNA Encryption for Secure Data Center Transmission

Xinshuai Liang, Chongfu Zhang, Wenjun Zeng, Jiebing Xia, Yue Lin, Yanwei Li, Kun Qiu

Published Jan 19, 2026• 1 citation

Abstract

With the development of the internet, the security of the optical data center interconnections (DCIs) has become a highly concerned topic. However, current security schemes face limitations such as the absence of viable key distribution mechanisms and the sensitivity to channel condition fluctuations. To address the above challenges, we propose a novel physical layer encryption scheme for WDM-based DCIs that combines encryption with channel conditions. Considering the need for dynamic key updates in DCIs, we first propose embedding plaintext-related keys (PRKs) into wavelength-related pilot (WP) positions for distribution. Leveraging their controllable size to combat impairments under varying channel conditions enables dynamic error propagation. Additionally, the proposed recombination mechanism supplements DNA encryption, allowing data transmission across different channels during inter-strand base exchange. The two channel 111.12 Gb/s discrete multi-tone (DMT) signal transmissions are successfully demonstrated. These results indicate that this scheme can transmit data on different paths. The key space can reach 10360and the complexity is about O(n). Furthermore, the key can be transmitted without redundancy and strongly relies on channel conditions to control security. Moreover, this scheme can alleviate the damage caused by high peak to average power ratio (PAPR), with an increase of approximately 0.5dBm at the forward error correction (FEC) limit.

DOI: 10.1109/jlt.2026.3655789

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