This PDF file contains the front matter associated with SPIE Proceedings Volume 13530, including the Title Page, Copyright information, Table of Contents, and Conference Committee information.

On-chip stimulated Brillouin scattering is a critical nonlinear optical phenomenon in photonics and optical signal processing. It requires the simultaneous confinement of acoustic and optical fields within waveguides characterized by a high nonlinear refractive index and low surface roughness. Among all types of glass materials, chalcogenide glasses have also been considered well suited for stimulated Brillouin scattering applications, such as for optical delay systems and filters, because of their high nonlinearities, their substantial refractive indices, and their excellent acousto-optical characteristics. In this context, we have investigated novel arsenic-free selenide and sulfide chalcogenide glasses, incorporating bismuth to enhance their optical properties for sustainable photonic devices. Those advancements in Bibased chalcogenide glasses represent a significant breakthrough for infrared photonics, enabling the development of ultrafast optical systems, IR sensing technologies, and supercontinuum generation platforms.

In this paper, we report on a silicon-nitride-based integrated photonic platform. Various electro-optic structures were designed to be included in this platform. Moreover, the process of packaging the silicon nitride chips and their applications for random number generation are discussed.

The integration of phase change materials (PCMs) into silicon photonic platforms is gaining momentum, offering the potential to expand the benefits of chip-integrated photonics to a wider range of applications. PCMs enable the development of photonic hardware with enhanced performance and novel functionalities, spanning diverse fields such as datacom, telecom, artificial intelligence, and LIDAR systems. Among PCMs, chalcogenides like Sb₂Se₃ have shown great potential for enabling reconfigurable photonic devices through non-volatile switching. This unique property, combined with negligible optical losses and a significant refractive index contrast, allows for ultra-compact end energy-efficient device footprints. This work demonstrates a silicon photonic switch in the datacom O-band, using Sb₂Se₃-based phase shifters, and analyzes the influence of the capping layer on device operation.

Modern laser treatments using three-dimensional scanning (3D) technologies bring novel solutions and great variability of free-form structures and devices. Standard planar techniques have limits which can be overcome in polymers. However, the resolution of polymer technologies cannot compete with silicon photonics, the free-form arrangement in 3D and hybridization on a chip and integration direct on optical fibres brings tremendous opportunities. We demonstrate capabilities of three laser techniques grayscale lithography, direct laser writing by two-photon polymerization and interference lithography. We present examples of structures and devices arranged in 3D and prepared on a chip and on optical fiber as optical splitters, grating structures and optical probes for scanning probe microscopy.

The rapid advancement of modern technology has led to a steep rise in global energy demand, posing serious challenges related to climate change and the geopolitical complexities of energy sourcing. In this context, modulators and optical amplifiers have become essential components in next-generation photonic chips, playing a pivotal role in improving energy efficiency across diverse applications ranging from telecommunications to smart window technologies. In particular, optical modulators are critical for controlling light intensity with high precision while minimizing power consumption, thereby contributing to the development of sustainable photonic systems. Among various modulation technologies, light emitting devices based on ionics stand out due to their ability to modulate light using low-voltage, reversible redox reactions. These devices offer significant energy savings over traditional light-emitting displays, as they require no constant voltage to maintain their optical state. Recent research has highlighted the potential of rare-earth-doped oxides, especially those combining the robust ionic-electronic conductivity of mixed ionic-electronic conductors with the optical tunability of RE ions. In this study, we demonstrate that Er- Pr- and Tb-doped yttria-stabilized zirconia integrated into silicon compatible structures are effective active layers in visible-light-emitting displays. Additionally, these rare-earthdoped materials exhibit strong visible light emission wavelengths which can be used for tunable and nonvolatile optical amplification and tunable lasers using ionics. These results highlight the versatility and performance potential of RE-doped YSZ as a multifunctional material platform for future photonic devices.

This work presents an innovative artificial intelligence (AI)-enhanced design for a four-channel silicon nitride (SiN) MMI multiplexer utilizing wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) technology. The design features a single MMI unit within the O-band spectrum, allowing for efficient transmission of four channels with 20 nm wavelength spacing, spanning 1270 to 1330nm over a short propagation distance of 22.8μm. The multiplexer achieves a power efficiency of 70%, with power losses ranging from 1.24 to 1.67dB. The design leverages AI-driven optimization for enhanced operational efficiency, minimizing light reflections through SiN waveguide inputs and output tapers. This approach offers a compact footprint, making it ideal for deployment in O-band WDM transceiver data centers, where it supports higher data bitrates and maintains a low energy consumption profile. The integration of AI further improves the system's performance, optimizing power distribution and minimizing losses, ensuring a high-performance, energy-efficient solution for photonic applications.

Electro-optic modulators are fundamental components in atomic physics experiments, including trapped-ion systems used in precision metrology and quantum computing. To enable scalable photonic integration, we design and analyze an integrated photonic electro-optic phase modulator and switch at 411nm for ytterbium (Yb⁺) ions using aluminum nitride (AlN) waveguides. We employ finite element method (FEM) simulations to optimize optical confinement, RF impedance matching, and electro-optic modulation efficiency. The phase modulator achieves a DC V_πL of 178 V cm for TE polarization. The photonic switch, designed with a push-pull electrode configuration, demonstrates a V_πL of 24 V cm, enabling efficient operation at lower voltages. These results highlight AlN as a candidate for ultraviolet photonic integrated circuits, facilitating high-speed optical modulation for trapped-ion applications.

Grating-Assisted Contra Directional Couplers (GACDCs) are versatile photonic devices used to implement adddrop responses with unlimited free-spectral range, steep roll-off and low ripple: due to these properties, GACDC are suitable integrated solutions for Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM) systems and many other applications transparent optical spectral processing. Different design techniques can be deployed to optimize their static response, with thermal control being used to dynamically adjust the drop bandwidth, allowing for further implementation flexibility. A new design technique that involves altering the periodicity of the gratings (pitch chirping) can enhance the dynamic control, leading to much wider bandwidth tunability without changing the required control scheme. In this work, we investigate the limits of such technique, highlighting the advantages through simulation of both the optical response as well as the thermal control.

High-performance photonic interconnects call upon novel solutions for efficient input/output optical interfaces. However, obtaining low-loss coupling between conventional optical fibers and photonic integrated circuits (PICs) remains a critical challenge due to material, modal, and geometrical discrepancies. In this work, we report advanced design approaches, leveraging subwavelength grating (SWG) metamaterials in silicon nitride (Si₃N₄) substrates. Harnessing unique properties of metamaterials within moderate index contrast SiN platform brings an extra degree of design freedom to seamlessly tailor light flow in grating couplers, improving both radiation efficiency and grating-tofiber field matching. In turn, this enhances fiber-chip coupling performance, while maintaining single-etch step manufacturing. SWG-engineered uniform Si₃N₄ couplers realized on low-pressure chemical vapor deposited (LPCVD) wafers showed experimental efficiency of about -4.5dB at 1550nm wavelength. Moreover, hybrid Si₃N₄ grating coupler designs with SWG metamaterials, operated at datacom range around 1310nm, boost the fiber-chip coupling efficiency to -2.4dB and -1.3dB levels for uniform and apodized structures, respectively. These results highlight the promising potential of metamaterial-engineered off-chip waveguide couplers in future innovations of complex SiN PICs, demanding low-loss interconnection with the outside world and cost-effective foundry-compatible fabrication.

Photonic integrated circuits (PIC) enable the miniaturization and integration of optical components on a single chip. Essential for testing of PICs, especially when sources and detectors are not integrated on the chip, is efficient coupling between optical fibers and waveguides.
Here, silicon nitride grating couplers operating at 1550nm wavelength were simulated, fabricated and investigated in the wavelength range of 1400nm to 1700nm. Grating couplers with slots and square holes were compared and show differences in bandwidth and transmission maxima.
The fabrication of grating couplers and single-mode waveguides was conducted on a 450nm thick Si₃N₄ platform, with 2μm thick bottom oxide and air cladding. Various deposition methods, including PECVD (Plasma-Enhanced Chemical Vapour Deposition), LPCVD (Low Pressure CVD) and ICPCVD (Inductively Coupled Plasma CVD), were compared to assess their effectiveness. Additionally, grating couplers with varying pitches and duty cycles were designed to optimize their performance.
Results of simulations and measurements were compared. Simulations were performed with Ansys Lumerical FDTD and show a transmission of −10dB at the target wavelength. The test structures were measured with a broadband supercontinuum laser and optical fibers via automated wafer level testing. The measurements show coupling efficiencies of −12.1dB at target wavelength of 1550nm for LP-Si₃N₄-couplers with square holes and −13.1dB at 1550nm for PESi₃N₄-couplers with slots. Grating couplers with square holes show a 3dB-bandwidth of 105nm, while grating couplers with slots reach a 3dB-bandwidth of 150nm. The bandwidth for the coupling efficiency about −20dB is 250nm. A propagation loss of 1dB/cm of the single-mode waveguide made of PE-Si₃N₄ and 0.25dB/cm of the single-mode waveguide made of LP-Si3N4 was measured.

Millimeter-wave (MMW) and Terahertz (THz) sources and receivers are essential in a wide range of applications, from high-resolution radar to spectroscopy, as well as high-capacity wireless links. Current efforts are directed towards their integration, benefiting from their small form factor. However, due to the wide bandwidth available at these frequencies, the challenges that need be addressed include increasing the operating bandwidth to use the available spectrum as well as to increase the total radiated power. Two key factors play a role in this, the intrinsic limitation of the components (i.e. limited fmax) and the inefficient on-chip radiation. In this work we address how dielectric structures can help improve radiation efficiency.

Optical frequency conversion (OFC) is an important process enabling the transformation of optical signals between different frequency bands both in classical and quantum photonics. This technique is essential for overcoming the limitations imposed by the fixed spectral characteristics of optical sources and detectors. This capability is crucial for applications in telecommunications, as well as in quantum information processing, where it could enable the interfacing of different quantum systems operating at distinct wavelengths and also the generation of entangled photons. In this work, we use silicon nitride (Si₃N₄) waveguides leveraging the third-order optical nonlinearity to achieve efficient four-wave mixing (FWM) for frequency conversion. Here, we present numerical simulation results of different waveguide structures, and geometry optimization for silicon nitride waveguides to achieve efficient frequency conversion in the optical C- and O-bands. We analyze the theoretical framework and design space of the silicon nitride devices for OFC, focusing on their efficiency and phase-matching conditions. We observe that a straight waveguide supports a broad wavelength range of high-efficiency operation, with an optical phase conjugation (OPC) efficiency of 0.542. Also, we observe maximum achievable conversion efficiency of -24dB and -18dB using a 100μm and 50μm radius-ring-waveguide design, respectively, with an on-chip pump power of 400mW.

Ultra-narrow linewidth lasers are essential for high-precision applications, including coherent communication, quantum photonics, LiDAR, and spectroscopy. Conventional methods for narrowing laser linewidths using external optical feedback (EOF) are fundamentally constrained by coherence collapse (CC). This instability occurs at feedback levels below 1 % of the output power, causing chaotic laser behavior and significant linewidth broadening. Our research introduces a dual-cavity feedback mechanism within a U-shaped laser configuration. By employing polarization-controlled EOF, we effectively prevent coherence collapse and significantly extend the range of feedback power that can be applied. This method achieves a robust, sub-kilohertz linewidth across a wide 42 nm tuning range in the infrared C-band (1513–1555nm). This advancement offers a promising solution for integrated photonic systems and next-generation coherent communication technologies that require CC-resilient, tunable laser sources with exceptionally narrow linewidths.

We demonstrate an ultracompact red-green-blue (RGB) combiner based on multimode waveguides in a silicon nitride integrated photonics platform, achieving a low insertion loss of ~1-2 dB and low footprint (86×2.3 μm²). The proposed combiner enables the development of compact imaging projectors for augmented reality display technologies.

The concept of bound states in the continuum (BICs), introduced nearly 90 years ago in quantum physics as a theoretical construction, has become the subject of an intensive investigation in the realm of photonics. In this talk, we report on our recent studies on BICs which appear in the photonic waveguides. The propagating BICs are usually observed in waveguides that exhibit the effect of lateral leakage. However, the states have some limitations: they are localized in or in the vicinity of high-refractive-index materials, they are observed as quasi-TM polarized waves, and they appear only for certain “magic” sets of parameters. Here, we focus on two systems that enable alternative mechanisms of BIC formation. In contrast to the previously described configurations, the first geometry, consisting of a rectangular waveguide coupled to a planar waveguide, facilitates genuine guiding of quasi-TE modes in the core with the lower refractive index. The TE BICs appear when the coupling between the bound and radiation modes is suppressed due to accidental orthogonality of modes. The second system, proton exchanged waveguide in Z-cut thin-film lithium niobate, can support very low-loss TMpolarized quasi-BIC modes for a range of waveguide widths not limited to “magic widths”. This is because the system exhibits a very small change of the ordinary refractive index between the core and substrate, which enables formation of polarization-protected quasi-BICs. We believe that the presented approaches well illustrate rich physics associated with BICs and offer new possibilities in their technical applications.

Photonic integrated circuits (PICs) are playing a crucial role in addressing interconnect bottlenecks when scaling modern AI data centers. The need for high-bandwidth and energy-efficient optical interconnects is driving the rapid adoption of new photonic technologies and sophisticated packaging methods, such as heterogeneous integration and co-packaged optics. However, existing photonic design automation workflows lack a unified platform for running multi-physics simulations in these tightly integrated systems. PhotonForge addresses this challenge by providing a comprehensive photonic design automation platform. Integrated with our GPU-accelerated solvers, PhotonForge facilitates complex component-level analyses and empowers PIC designers to evaluate the performance of entire systems within a single workflow. Furthermore, with support for process design kits (PDKs) from leading foundries, PhotonForge enables users to efficiently transition from optimizing and validating complex, real-world PICs to producing fabrication-ready designs.

We demonstrate Purcell-enhanced single-photon emission from metal-organic vapor-phase epitaxy (MOVPE) grown InAs quantum dots (QDs) on InP, emitting near the telecom C-band and integrated into L3 photonic crystal cavities. Using pulsed quasiresonant excitation (LA-phonon sideband), we measure a radiative lifetime as short as 340ps, yielding a Purcell factor of 5. Temperature tuning shows that single-photon purity remains high up to at least 25K. These findings highlight the potential for bright, high-rate single-photon devices at telecom wavelengths, compatible with cryogen-free operation and future fiber-based quantum communication.

Tunable open-access Fabry–Perot microcavities are versatile and widely applied in different areas of photonics research. These tunable microcavity combines a small mode volume with a large quality (Q) factor and in situ tunability of the resonance frequency, and is therefore an ideal platform to enhanced nonlinear interactions. In this work, we demonstrate that by incorporating a diamond micromembrane with a small thickness gradient, both the absolute frequency and the frequency difference between two cavity modes can be controlled precisely. The two independent tuning parameters facilitates double-resonance enhancement of nonlinear processes. As a proof-of-concept, we experimentally demonstrate > THz continuous tuning range of doubly-resonant Raman scattering from diamond. Based on the experimentally measured Q-factor exceeding 300 000, theoretical analysis suggests that ∼ mW threshold for establishing Raman lasing is within reach. Our findings pave the way for the creation of a universal, low-power frequency shifter. This concept can be applied to enhance other nonlinear processes such as second-harmonic generation or optical parametric oscillation across different material platforms.

Diamond constitutes a promising material platform for a myriad of photonic applications. In this work, we demonstrate several novel nonlinear optical phenomena in fibre-taper coupled diamond micro and nanocavities. Central to these observations are ensembles of nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centres native to the diamond devices. We first show photoinduced modifications of second-harmonic generation (SHG) from a microdisk, and demonstrate, for the first time, that the strength of the SHG strongly depends on the charge state of the NV centres. Illuminating the microdisk with a green laser quenches the SHG signal. Removing the green laser recovers the original SHG signal, allowing for deterministic optical switching of the device’s χ⁽²⁾. We next show strong photorefractive blue-shifting of the resonance frequency in a diamond photonic crystal cavity. The total frequency shift exceeds the intrinsic linewidth, corresponding to a fractional change in refractive index of ∼ −10⁻⁴.

Photonic integrated circuits are a promising technology for space applications, particularly for future highthroughput optical satellite links. They can be employed in optical communications terminals to integrate both active and passive devices such as photodiodes, filters, lasers, and modulators. However, the effects of the space environment, and of radiation in particular, on integrated optical devices still need to be better understood. The development of the current technology was driven by fiber-optic communications in terrestrial applications. For the application in space, changes are needed to adapt the same technology to the space environment. We present developments towards the demonstration of a coherent transceiver for satellite optical communications and ranging. Total ionizing dose tests were performed by measuring SiN integrated devices before and after exposure to a Co-60 source, and the permanent impact of irradiation was evaluated. The results show only a relatively small change in optical properties, such as effective index. Nevertheless, these changes could still be detrimental in sensitive devices. The irradiation effect is modeled and simulated to study its impact already at the design phase, and the potential changes on an integrated demultiplexer are discussed. Furthermore, thermal annealing is used to partially revert the changes induced by radiation.

The space division multiplexing (SDM) technology has become a key innovation to enhance the communication capacity in the next-generation optical communication networks, as it introduces a new dimension of multiplexing. However, little research has been done on the SDM technology in semiconductor chips, especially in the photonic integrated circuits (PICs), where the SDM waveguide is a representative passive device. How to design a chipscale SDM waveguide with adjustable transmission path, low insertion loss, and low interlayer crosstalk is the focus of research. Currently, the realization of chip-scale SDM systems is dominated by multimode waveguides/devices on a single layer. In this paper, an SDM waveguide design is proposed based on the periodic dielectric waveguide (PDWG) structure, where the multiplexing paths can be arranged in the same horizontal plane as well as in the same vertical plane, and a low crosstalk and high-efficiency independent multi-channel transmission can be achieved even under a bending angle of 90 degrees. Simulation results show that the insertion loss of the structure is less than 0.05 dB per wavelength for all channels at 1.55 μm wavelength, and the isolation is more than 56 dB between adjacent channels.

We designed a type of evanescent taper coupler for micro-transfer printed III-V photonic devices with high coupling efficiency (CE) and good manufacturing tolerances. The primary sensitive factor in the manufacturing process, lateral misalignment, is incorporated into the particle swarm optimization algorithm. The CE of the optimized taper structure exceeds 98.5% for a misalignment of up to 0.5 microns within a taper length of 150 microns. Furthermore, the taper structure demonstrates robust coupling under other manufacturing tolerances.

We present a low-complexity integrated visible light positioning and communication system. Vertical cavity surface emitting laser supplies power for plastic optical fiber (POF), and POF acts as a feeder to transmit signals to each room. The system uses received signal strength (RSS) and trilateration methods to achieve positioning. The complexity of highprecision RSS positioning can be reduced by using Gaussian light model and the beam spot area relationship. Experimental results show that our system can realize over 9 Gbps wireless communication under on-off keying (OOK) modulation, and the positioning error can be less than 1 cm at a detection distance of 70cm.

Achieving high optical transparency in the short-wavelength infrared (SWIR) is crucial for infrared applications. Traditional transparent electrodes based on conducting oxides and ultrathin metals exhibit poor SWIR transparency due to their high optical density. In this study, we introduce a SWIR-transparent electrode with an ultrathin silver film and high-refractive-index overlay, achieving 86% transmittance at 1300 nm with a sheet resistance of 14 Ω/□. This electrode maintains high transparency over a wide range of angles, with less than 10% deviation at 50 degrees. Integrated into silicon, these electrodes enable the first SWIR-transparent silicon hot-carrier photodetectors, demonstrating stable photocurrent and low optical interference, suitable for LiDAR, infrared imaging, and optical communication. Our approach offers a promising solution for advancing SWIR-transparent optoelectronics, contributing to the development of high-performance devices for diverse infrared applications.

My topic of research is setting up ultra-high sensitive absorption spectroscopy technique which enables study of new age semiconductor materials with opto-electronic interest.This optical method of characterisation is called Photothermal Deflection Spectroscopy (PDS) which is capable of measuring absorption upto 5 orders of dynamic range of sensitivity. Due to it's high dynamic range it can enable the study of sub-bandgap states of materials which plays key role in photovoltaic properties. Due to an unique detection technique of it's own, PDS easily overcomes the limitations of conventional absorption spectroscopy techniques which can obtain only 1-2 orders of magnitude and hence end up giving erronious results in sub-bandgap regions.

Silicon-based photonic integrated circuits (PIC) in a complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) technology are essential for next-generation communication systems and neuromorphic computing. Silicon lacks from efficient electro-optical (EO) effects. Since silicon is limiting the performance of current photonic devices, more advanced materials like nonlinear optical polymers are needed to unleash the full potential of PICs. As preliminary proof of concept we demonstrate the quadratic EO and electric field-induced EO effect by employing a Mach-Zehnder interferometer. Following our monolithic integration concept could open a way for next-generation PICs.

This study presents a cost-effective, two-dimensional beam-steering approach for optical wireless communication (OWC) that addresses some limitations of existing methods. Using a graded-index multimode fiber (MMF) connected to a single-mode fiber (SMF) and looped through two polarization controllers, this setup enables mode coupling and precise beam steering across 64 configurations. Driven by a 450-nm laser, it achieves stable data rates above 100 Mbps, demonstrating suitability for dynamic, multi-user scenarios. With a highly economical beam-steering component setup, this method provides a pathway toward fully integrated photonic designs that could further enhance scalability and adaptability for non-inertia beam-steered OWC technologies.

We present a free-space visible light communication (VLC) system that utilizes low-resolution digital-to-analog converters (DACs) based on layered asymmetrically clipped optical orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (LACO-OFDM). While asymmetrically clipped optical OFDM (ACO-OFDM) is more suitable than DC-biased optical OFDM (DCOOFDM) in low-resolution DAC systems, it generally exhibits lower spectral efficiency. To address this limitation while maintaining the lower bit error rate (BER) advantage of ACO-OFDM, we employ LACO-OFDM to enhance its spectral efficiency, potentially increasing it by up to 1.75 times. The integration of low-power digital signal processing (DSP) chips enables effective signal processing while minimizing power consumption. This approach not only meets the rising demand for energy-efficient communication solutions but also improves spectral efficiency.

This work presents a 2D photonic crystal based asymmetric parallel waveguide (APW) design, which can be used for hybrid wavelength and mode division multiplexer. The APW performs the mode conversion operation by utilizing the quasi-phase matching criteria, and an adiabatic taper waveguide region is used for the smooth mode transition with maximum coupling efficiency. The proposed device can couple and transmit two modes at 1550nm and 1310nm wavelengths into the bus waveguide, achieving minimum insertion loss and crosstalk of 0.13dB and –32.21dB, respectively.

Control and manipulation of light are crucial topics in optics and photonics. Ridge waveguides are a type of rectangular waveguide designed to provide effective control over light. These customized designs stand out due to their high mode confinement, efficient optical communication with low losses, and flexibility for different applications. The mode profile supported by the waveguide, which is determined by the ridge width and height, is generally calculated using numerical methods such as Finite Difference Eigenmode (FDE) and Eigenmode Expansion (EME). However, as the structures become more complex, the computational costs associated with these methods increase significantly.

A ridge waveguide using a 0.5μm wide and 0.18μm high silicon core on a silicon dioxide substrate was designed in this study. The fundamental mode with transverse electric polarization was analyzed using the FDE method. The fundamental mode profiles derived from varying ridge heights, widths, and light wavelengths were organized to provide the dataset for the training of the transposed convolutional neural network (CNN) designed for mode estimation. The efficiency of this transposed-based CNN model in mode profile estimation was assessed by the computation of several learning performance measures, including MAE, MSE, and RMSE. The results of this study demonstrate the capability of the created deep learning model to serve as an alternative to conventional approaches in computational electromagnetic applications.

We studied a planar dielectric waveguide with a surface relief diffraction grating on it. Such a system has a variety of applications including optical sensors, filters, couplers, splitters, and switches. We focused on relatively thick (600um) multimode waveguides with high mode density. Most optical phenomena in such waveguides are well described in geometrical optics. However, we developed a wave theory that predicts the possibility of excitation of only one selected mode. We have investigated such a possibility theoretically and experimentally. Using a monochromatic laser beam with an optimized spatial profile, we demonstrated separate excitation of selected modes in the high-quality Corning glass waveguide supporting 3258 modes.

Laser Imaging Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) is a critical system for Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) and Autonomous Driving (AD) vehicles, robotic mobility, and industrial automation. In ADAS and AD applications, LiDAR data is used to help make decisions that impact the safety and comfort of both vehicle occupants and other road users. LiDAR sensor technology allow to cover weaknesses of existing sensors configurations: higher range detection, better 3D precision to identify and segment objects shapes and materials.
The optical design and receiver technology significantly influence the performance of a LiDAR system. Recent advancements have enabled increased integration of sensor readout and signal processing directly onto sensor chips but prototyping and evaluating these systems remain costly and time-consuming.
To address this, developing a simulation workflow to model the optical subsystem and the photodetector’s response, including signal processing and point cloud generation is key. This simulation workflow is the object of a collaboration project between Ansys and Onsemi, that combines the Ansys Speos’ non-sequential ray-tracing solver for optical system simulation, with onsemi’s SPAD (Single Photon Avalanche Diode) model for detailed sensor response and processing. Thanks to the interoperability between Ansys simulations solvers, the optics characteristics are also considered, while protecting the Intellectual Property of the suppliers, by importing a ‘blackbox file’ into Ansys Speos.
This approach has been validated through correlation using the Onsemi Pandion SPAD Array LiDAR Demo, demonstrating strong agreement between simulated and experimental results. This joint effort showcases how advanced simulation tools can streamline LiDAR development and optimize system performance.
The signal to noise ratio (SNR) of the LiDAR system is a key parameter that limits the LiDAR detection probability, particularly at long distances. In this analysis, the SiPM and SPAD array sensors were compared in terms of performance for long range LiDAR applications. The effect of varying the system optical parameters is also explored since angular resolution and lens aperture can impact the SNR performance in a different way depending on the sensor choice.