Abstract

Laser diodes are being utilized with increasing frequency in optical remote sensing applications. Their attractive features include small size, low cost, low power consumption, good output power, high modulation speed, good reliability, and good wavelength tunability. However, their optical properties vary significantly even during the same manufacturing run. Therefore, when the application places stringent requirements on their optical properties, diodes need to be individually characterized and evaluated. This paper discusses our present efforts to characterize laser diodes for use in a Differential Absorption Lidar (DIAL) instrument which imposes very tight requirements on diode behavior.

© 1993 Optical Society of America