➀ Omnitron Sensors, a Los Angeles-based MEMS fabrication IP specialist, has raised $13 million in Series A funding;

➁ The investment will be used to expand the company's engineering and operations teams and accelerate the mass production of its first product, a MEMS step-scanning mirror;

➂ Omnitron's target markets include improving throughput and energy efficiency in AI data centers, advancing affordability and reliability of LiDAR in autonomous vehicles, and enhancing display quality in XR headsets/eyewear.

➀ Engineers and roboticists from the University of Hong Kong have developed a high-speed aerial robot named SUPER that can navigate unknown environments while avoiding obstacles.

➁ The robot uses 3D LiDAR technology instead of traditional cameras and sensors to provide real-time feedback and generate a flight path strategy in real-time.

➂ During testing, the robot demonstrated the ability to navigate obstacle courses at 20 meters per second and track targets in complex environments.

➀ This article introduces a LIDAR-pulsed time-of-flight reference design using high-speed data converters from Texas Instruments (TI). It highlights the benefits of a high-speed data converter-based solution, such as improved target identification, reduced sample rate demands, and a simpler signal chain.

➁ The design supports a measurement range of up to 9 meters or more with additional optics and increased laser power. It achieves a range measurement mean error of less than ±6 mm and a standard deviation of less than 3 cm, ensuring high accuracy.

➂ The system uses a pulsed ToF measurement method with DFT-based range estimation for improved efficiency. Key components include 14-bit, 125-MSPS ADCs, 16-bit, 500-MSPS DACs, high-speed amplifiers, and precise clocking.

➀ Commercial APDs typically consist of InGaAs/InAlAs and InGaAs/InP, but they have high noise factors and require high-power lasers for long-range detection.

➁ Huawei has developed an APD structure with a 1.5μm InGaAs absorption layer and a 0.55μm Al0.85Ga0.15As0.56Sb0.44 layer on InP, achieving a 200 μm radius photosensitive area with an anti-reflection coating.

➂ AlGaAsSb APD demonstrates higher gain (127) and lower noise factor (4.0) compared to InP APD.

➃ AlGaAsSb APD has a sensitivity advantage of over 5dB at temperatures below 20°C and maintains a 2dB advantage at 105°C.

➄ In a laser radar system, AlGaAsSb APD provides four times the signal of InP APD, reducing the required laser power by 66%.

➅ AlGaAsSb APD passed reliability tests with a breakdown voltage decrease less than 1V and dark current increase less than 30% after 2000 hours of aging.