Analysis of LiDAR system performance through analogy with FSO communication systems

LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) systems are used in autonomous vehicle technology and environmental sensing applications. In this study, the performance of LiDAR systems is simulated by adapting it to a free space optical (FSO) communication system and analyzed using this approach. OptiSystem software was used in the simulation studies and different atmospheric conditions such as clear, rainy and extremely foggy weather conditions were considered. The performance of LiDAR systems under these conditions was evaluated; the effects of features on the backscattering ratios of the backscattered signals from the target surface and the effects of these outputs on system performance were evaluated. The results were analyzed to show that atmospheric conditions and target reflection rates affect the LiDAR system performance and that the received pulse quality is negatively affected by increasing the detection distance.