Integrated multi-functional silicon photonic engine for long-range FMCW laser ranging
摘要
We present an integrated multi-functional silicon photonic engine tailored specifically for long-range frequency-modulated continuous-wave (FMCW) laser ranging systems. The engine integrates a parallel four-channel dual-polarization coherent detection module, an on-chip optical splitting system, a laser nonlinearity calibration module utilizing a large-scale optical delay line (DL), and an on-chip local light optical splitting unit on a single chip. Key components, including germanium-silicon photodetectors, were optimized to achieve high responsivity (1.09 A/W) and low dark current (3.6 nA). The on-chip delay line design achieves an optical time delay of 5.74 ns with improved loss, enabling nonlinearity calibration that enhances signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and spectrum linewidth. The packaged silicon photonic engine, with a chip size of 2.8 mm × 2.7 mm, demonstrates ranging capabilities up to 200 m with SNR exceeding 10 dB across all four channels. This study represents a new integration solution for the FMCW laser ranging system, providing a robust platform for automotive and other high-precision ranging applications.