A Compact High-Precision Cascade PID-Control Laser Driver for Airborne Coherent LiDAR Applications

• Published in: Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) Vol. 25; no. 9; p. 2851
• Main Authors: Ming, Zixuan, Li, Xianzhuo, Wang, Yanyi, Qu, Yuanzhe, Lu, Zhiyong, Jia, Honghui, Yuan, Haoming, Zhang, Qianwu, Zhang, Junjie, Song, Yingxiong
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 30.04.2025; MDPI
• Subjects: Accuracy; Bandwidths; cascade PID control; Circuits; Control algorithms; Data processing; Design; Doppler effect; dual-frequency coherent doppler LiDAR; Field programmable gate arrays; frequency-temperature compensation mechanism; Lasers; Optical radar; Principles; Remote sensing; Signal processing; Software; Transistors; Velocity; frequency-temperature compensation mechanism; cascade PID control; dual-frequency coherent doppler LiDAR
• ISSN: 1424-8220; 1424-8220
• DOI: 10.3390/s25092851

This paper solves the challenge of precise dual-frequency laser control in Airborne Coherent Doppler LiDAR systems by implementing an innovative laser driver architecture, which integrates compact hardware design with cascade Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) control and a frequency–temperature compensation mechanism. The experimental results demonstrate eminent performance with long-term temperature fluctuation below 0.007 °C, temperature stabilizing time under 4 s and long-term power fluctuation of the linear constant current source being <1%. The system enables wide-range temperature–frequency adjustment for individual lasers and dynamically adjusts the dual-laser beat frequencies between −1 GHz and +2 GHz, achieving the frequency difference fluctuation within 3 MHz. These achievements greatly enhance LiDAR performance and create possibilities for broader applications in dynamic environmental sensing, atmospheric monitoring, deep-space exploration, and autonomous systems.