Signal to Noise Ratio Characterization of Coherent Doppler Lidar Backscattered Signals

Abstract

An eye-safe coherent Doppler Lidar (CDL) system for wind measurement was developed and tested at the Remote Sensing Laboratory of the City College of New York (CCNY). The system employs a 1542 nm fiber laser to leverage components’ availability and affordability of the telecommunication industry. A balanced detector with a bandwidth extending from dc to 125 MHz is used to eliminate the common mode relative intensity noise (RIN). The system is shot noise limited i.e., the dominant component of received signals’ noise is the shot noise. Wind velocity can be measured under nominal aerosol loading and atmospheric turbulence conditions for ranges up to 3 km while pointing vertically with 0.08 m/s precision.