News: Optoelectronics
23 September 2020
Emcore launches 1550nm high-power laser module for LiDAR and optical sensing
Emcore launches 1550nm high-power laser module for LiDAR and optical sensing
Emcore Corp of Alhambra, CA, USA – which provides mixed-signal products for the aerospace & defense and broadband communications markets – has launched the Model 1790 1550nm-wavelength high-power laser module for light detection & ranging (LiDAR) and optical sensing applications.
The 1790 laser module was developed for use as a continuous-wavelength (CW) coherent optical source for next-generation frequency-modulation continuous wavelength (FMCW) LiDAR systems. A custom version of the new product has already been adopted by a major provider of LiDAR systems for its anticipated use in autonomous vehicles.
The underlying technology for the Model 1790 has been in development for over three years and was designed to address demanding applications in industrial sensing and measurement. The 1790 achieves extremely narrow linewidths combined with a high-efficiency coupling scheme to enable high optical output power of 18dBm, creating a compact, robust solution for FMCW sensing. Its monolithic design, combined with optimized coupling optics, makes it highly immune to the mode or optical frequency hopping typically found with single-isolator, external-cavity designs. Emcore says that its LiDAR laser technology maintains optical frequency stability over temperature, suppressing false readings caused by the mode or frequency hopping which is typical in conventional designs.
Emcore sees its laser technology for LiDAR and optical sensing supporting a broad array of industrial applications beyond autonomous vehicles, including materials characterization, strain measurement, terahertz spectroscopy, interferometry, position and interference measurement, and other applications. “Our vertical integration allows for different wavelengths to be available for custom applications and form factors, including packaged component or micro-optical subassembly,” Gyo Shinozaki, VP & general manager of broadband.
The Model 1790 laser module is DC-coupled with a built-in thermo-electric cooler (TEC), thermistor and monitor photodiode. The device is packaged in a 14-pin, OC-48 pinout compatible hermetic butterfly form factor with double optical isolator mounted on the TEC. It has a wide operating temperature range from -10°C to +65°C and is Telcordia Technologies GR-468 and RoHS compliant.
