LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) is an important sensor for ADAS (Advanced Driving Assisting System), Autonomous Vehicles (AVs) and Industrial Automation. Laser emitter with high efficiency, remarkable reliability, tiny and good cost performance will incontrovertibly advance the core of LiDAR. Instead of a bulky and expensive mechanical scanning LiDAR, 100% Solid-State LiDAR will be an attractive and widely used product for the market. Better news, Brightlaser VCSEL is a good friend with Solid-State LiDAR. 

Solid-State LiDAR

Flash LiDAR and Optical Phase Array (OPA) LiDAR are classified as 100% Solid-State LiDAR, which all components are integrated into a single board without a moving part to minimize the vibration effect. Other LiDAR using spinning and microelectromechanical systems (MEMs) mirror enable to have >180° to 360° FOV (Field of view) and longer range.
The principle of Flash Solid-State LiDAR is to illuminate the FOV with a single flash by a wide-angle laser source, then detect the back-scattered light by an array of photodetectors. It is like a digital camera to capture one image per flash. OPA LiDAR implements 2D array laser emitters and independently controlled phase shifter to form an arbitrary far-field patterns and change the direction of beam. This concept comes from the phase array of antennas in RADAR technology but shrinks down to nanoscales. MEMs LiDAR is the millimetre scaled mechanical LiDAR that have a tiny mirror used to direct the laser beam for scanning.

Range, Repetition Rate and Resolution are the key parameters of LiDAR. Range is how far that the LiDAR have enough data to distinguish an object. Repetition Rate is how frequent that the LiDAR capture the two times of an image. Resolution is how many points that LiDAR can apply in the FOV. Table shown the comparison among different Solid-State LiDAR.

Brightlaser VCSELs

VCSEL (Vertical cavity surface emitting laser) have advantages over the traditional edge emitting laser because

Brightlaser provides a high power, short pulse width and small beam divergence Pulsed VCSEL diodes, which is the best choice for Solid-State LiDAR! Brightlaser also provides packages with SMD 2016, TO-can TO46 and multi-channel 1x4, 1x8, 1x16. The multi-channel array is used to integrate several dies and apply the power to each die individually to meet the unique applications.
VCSEL with wavelength 850nm give a strong penetration in high a humidity environment while VCSEL with wavelength 940nm is the Class 1 eye-safe laser at higher power. Silicon CMOS photodetector enable to detect these wavelengths with good sensitivity. Pulsed optical power from 10W to 1000W are available to apply for short to middle range target. Small beam angle of VCSEL is way to improve LiDAR’s resolution. 

Last but foremost, Brightlaser provides multi-junction VCSELs for Lidars, which can achieve a higher peak power with smaller emission area that reduces the complexity of optics system.