Table 14 Ranging methods and performances of OPA-based LiDARs

From: Progress and prospects for LiDAR-oriented optical phased arrays based on photonic integrated circuits

Ranging Method

Range [m] @ Reflectivity

Ranging Precision

FOV\({\theta }_{Y}(^\circ )\times {\theta }_{X}(^\circ )\)

Point Rate [pps]

ToF241

20 @ 60%

6.1 cm @ 20 m

20 × 3.5

48 k i

ToF111

20 @ 90%

34.6 cm @ 20 m

96 × 13.5 ii

NA

FMCW25

100 @ 90%

3.4 cm @ 100 m iii

100 × 19 ii

10 k

FMCW81

35 @ 10%

NA (~ cm iv)

100 × 17

28.6 k v

FMCW37

22 @ 10%

0.55 cm @ 3 m

160 × 3

10 k

PhMCW242

8 @ 90%

3.5 cm @ 8 m vi

94 × 14.4 ii

100 k vii

  1. i The repetition rate of the pulse train is 1 MHz, and multiple pulse trains are used to increase SNR.
  2. ii These prototypes used mechanically steered lenses/collimators in RX. Therefore, the FOV of the OPA is reported as the theoretical FOV of the LiDAR system. However, it should be noted that the wide-angle lens system is susceptible to distortion and vignetting, limiting the uniformity within the FOV.
  3. iii This was reported as the ranging accuracy of the system, which is the maximum absolute deviation from the measured range at 100 m among 116 measurements. Other work typically published the standard deviation of multiple measurements.
  4. iv Estimated from previous publications from the same group, the 3D point cloud can discern detailed object features.
  5. v Estimated based on disclosed data. The laser is capable of a linear chirp of 1.3 GHz in 17.5 μs, corresponding to a repetition rate of 28.6 kHz for triangular wave frequency modulation; the 8192-channel OPA demonstrates a point rate of 33 kHz. A 10 kpps value is also reported in later systems82.
  6. vi Limited by experimental area. SNR at 7 m is 36 dB, which can be extrapolated to 100 m with an SNR of 2.5 dB, as the authors claimed.
  7. vii This is the repetition rate of the phase modulation, which is the theoretical point rate.
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