PALO ALTO, Calif., Nov. 29, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — Baraja, creator of the breakthrough Spectrum-Scan™ LiDAR technology, announces the availability of A-Samples of all the integrated components necessary to build a new-to-world Doppler RMCW Spectrum-Scan™ LiDAR for automotive integration.
A LiDAR has two main jobs to perform: measure distance (ranging) and steering a light (scanning), and it’s a complex system that integrates electronics, optics, photonics, advanced software algorithms for signal processing with the rigor of industrial quality and automotive cost and scale.
"Multiple heterogeneous sub-systems are contained in a LiDAR, this would require each sub-system’s integration via completely different classes of chips and using different processes. Baraja announces today that all the different chips and integrated components (Tx, Rx, Amplification, Processing and Steering) to build the highest performance LiDAR offering, including Doppler velocity, are now available as A-Samples for integration" said Federico Collarte, Baraja CEO, "we’ve made it really simple to plug-and-play the components to get the best performance LiDAR and the beauty of the solution is that the technologies developed to get to these chips self-reinforce and make possible further integration in the future".
Light amplification – the SOA
The Semiconductor Optical Amplifier (SOA) integrates the amplifier chip, together with a custom-developed high-efficiency Thermo-electric cooler into a hermetically sealed and automotive-grade package and it’s able to amplify the laser light to achieve the >200m range requirements, while being mass-produceable (chip process) and 50-80x smaller and lower power consumption compared to fiber amplifiers used by legacy 1550nm LiDAR, including Baraja’s own Off-Road first generation product.
Light emission and reception – the BOSA
The Bidirectional Optical Sub-Assembly (BOSA) integrates 3 types of chips in an automotive-grade, hermetically sealed and temperature controlled enclosure (3×3.5cm). These chips are: the laser chip (InP), the homodyne receiver chip (silicon photonics) and the TIA chips (silicon). These, plus micro optics and automotive-grade Thermo-electric coolers deliver an end-to-end solution to produce and receive the wavelength-tuneable laser light that is the hallmark of Spectrum-Scan™, so in a sense the BOSA also partially integrates the "steering" job of the LiDAR.
Development process
Developing optical sub-assemblies and "chips", if done well is about a 36-month process. "I’m pleased to share that now with our A-Samples available, we’re right on track to launching Spectrum HD 2025 C-samples/General Availability in 2025, and if you want to have access to this truly transformational technology it’s a great time to work together" said Cibby Pulikkaseril, Baraja CTO.
About Baraja
At Baraja, we move light so you can move mountains. For information please visit www.baraja.com/en/blog/power-of-integration
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