Super-dense point clouds acquired by an ultralight 10 g solid-state single photon LiDAR

Area of Science:

• Optoelectronics
• 3D Imaging Technologies
• Photonics

Background:

• Photogrammetry and LiDAR integration enhance 3D modeling accuracy.
• Conventional LiDAR systems face challenges in capturing fine structural details.
• Minimizing photon cost per measurement is crucial for advanced LiDAR applications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop an ultralight, solid-state single-photon LiDAR system.
• To improve geometric fidelity and capture fine structural information in 3D models.
• To reduce the photon cost per measurement in LiDAR technology.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a Q-switching semiconductor laser emitting 50-ps pulse-width tail-free laser.
• Implemented a four-channel time-to-digital converter with 3 ps timing jitter and real-time error correction.
• Employed a low-Q 2D MEMS mirror for non-repetitive scanning and super-dense point cloud generation.

Main Results:

• Achieved a maximum indoor distance of 25 m and a point cloud density of ~3.16 Mpps.
• Demonstrated superior geometric fidelity and preservation of fine structure information compared to conventional LiDAR.
• Successfully generated 3D models using colored point clouds from the developed LiDAR system.

Conclusions:

• The ultralight single-photon LiDAR system offers enhanced performance for 3D modeling.
• The system effectively minimizes photon cost while maintaining high geometric accuracy and detail.
• Further research is needed to address the characteristics and challenges associated with the generated colored point clouds.