Investigating Temperature Effects in Directly Modulated Laser-Diodes in Coherent FMCW-LiDAR Systems

LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) is considered a key sensor technology for autonomous driving. FMCW (Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave) transmission is a widely-used concept. To achieve sufficient resolution, a highly linear chirp is required. Excellent non-linearity compensation techniques have been proposed, all requiring temperature stabilization of the laser source. In this paper, we study the impact of changes in the operating temperature of a laser on the precision of FMCW-LiDAR. We give preliminary insights into the need of temperature control and if it can be omitted to potentially reduce system complexity and thus cost.