A new era in driverless vehicles: A coin-sized laser

Researchers from the University of Rochester and the University of California, Santa Barbara, have developed a coin-sized laser that could enable driverless vehicles to perceive their surroundings much more precisely. The laser is reportedly designed to advance the scientific technique of "optical metrology," which uses light to measure and identify objects.

This miniature laser could contribute to the development of lidar (light detection and ranging) technology. Lidar systems analyze invisible light signals reflected by lasers from surrounding objects to gather information about their size, distance, and speed. This helps driverless vehicles navigate safely.

Researchers argue that current lidar systems are inadequate due to their complex structure and proneness to errors. The newly developed laser is reportedly capable of collecting environmental data much more quickly and precisely.

Tracks moving objects better

Shixin Xue, a doctoral student on the team, explained that the laser they developed can provide the wide and fast frequency tuning required for frequency-modulated continuous wave lidar (FMCW LiDAR), an advanced type of lidar. This capability allows driverless vehicles to track moving objects more precisely.

To demonstrate the laser's sensitivity, the researchers noted that it could detect the letters "U" and "R" made of Lego bricks on a spinning disk. This demonstrates the laser's ability to pick out details even in fast-moving objects.

Xue also emphasized that they've managed to fit all the components of the Pound-Drever-Hall (PDH) frequency-locking process into the laser. This process, which normally requires equipment the size of a desktop computer, can now be performed on a small chip. This makes the laser both smaller and more versatile.

IT CAN ALSO BE USED IN AIRCRAFT

The new laser could also be used in systems requiring low air resistance, such as autonomous aircraft. It could also be applied in areas requiring highly sensitive laser systems, such as quantum information processing or the detection of gravitational waves.

According to the research, the laser can emit 20 quintillion (billion billion) light pulses per second and detect objects moving at 40 meters per second from 40 centimeters away. It can also operate reliably for 60 minutes.

The development process was also supported by the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). The work was conducted as part of DARPA's LUMOS (Lasers for Universal Microscale Optical Systems) program.