Single-Photon Avalanche Diode (SPAD) sensors are one of the detectors of choice in LIDAR applications, due to their high sensitivity and time resolution. Traditionally, single-point SPAD detectors have been used, necessitating optical scanning, and hence leading to slower acquisition times. However, recent advances in SPAD technology have yielded high pixel count imagers. In these sensors, high sensitivity is ensured by maximising the photo-sensitive area of the device, whilst time-resolved capability is offered by the time stamping of photon detections and/or a programmable timegate synced to the laser source. The resulting sensors show an exciting promise for LIDAR, especially in challenging, low-light, high-speed applications.
We present Time-of-Flight (TOF) distance, velocity and acceleration characterisation of a multi-event Time-to-Digital- Converter (TDC) optical sensor featuring a 32x32 Single Photon Avalanche Diode (SPAD) array, a 14 GS/s TDC and on-chip histogram generation. Events are continuously recorded on-chip in 264 70 ps-wide histogram bins. High TDC throughput enables the device to be operated in Doppler mode with pulse-trains moving at hypervelocity speeds relative to the operational sensor frequency. Electrical frequency-detuned signals of 50 kHz are resolved by the TDC module. Optical frequency-detuned signals of 1 kHz are resolved, corresponding to a TOF velocity resolution of 15.8 km/s. Linear, sine-wave, and chirp frequency modulation techniques are used to demonstrate these characteristics.
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