Soliton Microcomb Range Measurement

Laser-based range measurement systems (LIDAR) are important in many application areas including autonomous vehicles, robotics, manufacturing, formation-flying of satellites, and basic science. Coherent laser ranging systems using dual frequency combs provide an unprecedented combination of long range, high precision and fast update rate. Here, dual-comb distance measurement using chip-based soliton microcombs is demonstrated. Moreover, the dual frequency combs are generated within a single microresonator as counter-propating solitons using a single pump laser. Time-of-flight measurement with 200 nm precision at 500 ms averaging time is demonstrated. Also, the dual comb method extends the ambiguity distance to 26 km despite a soliton spatial period of only 16 mm. This chip-based source is an important step towards miniature dual-comb laser ranging systems that are suitable for photonic integration.