KEYWORDS: LIDAR, Absorption, Signal to noise ratio, Pulse signals, Frequency combs, Design and modelling, Quantum cascade lasers, Gases, Spectroscopy, Signal processing
We report on the design of a dual comb-based fiber lidar system for Integrated Path Differential Absorption (IPDA) measurements. The system relies on the Dual Comb Spectroscopy (DCS) technique using the lidar return from a hard target. Frequency combs are generated by means of electro-optic modulators. The working principle and architecture of the dual comb lidar are detailed. We present a proof of concept of the lidar system and demonstrate the measurement of a water-vapor absorption line, utilizing a diffuse (non-cooperative) hard target located 200 meters away from the emitter.
We report on recent advances at ONERA on fiber-based laser and lidar systems, in the perspective of future space-borne monitoring of greenhouse gas, especially CO2 and CH4. We first present an advancement status of research activities on high-peak-power single-frequency fiber lasers at 2.05 μm and 1.58 μm for CO2 monitoring, and at 1.64 μm for CH4, as well as perspectives for future amplification and frequency-stabilization of these lasers. The second parts deals with activities led on electro-optic dual comb spectroscopy (EO-DCS), which could be a potential future alternative technique to conventional space-borne IPDA lidars (Integrated Path Differential Absorption). We report on an EO-DCS experiment performed in pulsed regime, using an Er-Yb-doped amplifier delivering up to 92 μJ, 2μs pulses at 10 kHz repetition rate. An absorption line of HCN is sampled simultaneously by a 13-teeth frequency comb, and its transmission is measured with a good agreement with respect to the expectation.
We are developing a DIfferential Absorption Lidar (DIAL) for CO2 remote sensing using coherent detection, based on a pulsed hybrid laser emitter at 2.05 μm. In the 2 μm region, the R30 CO2 absorption line has been identified as one of the most promising for space-borne DIAL instrument to provide precise sounding of the atmospheric boundary layer where CO2 sources and sinks are located. In this paper, we present the Tm-doped all-fiber part of the emitter and we demonstrate its ability to measure the CO2 Volume Mixing Ratio (VMR) in the atmosphere. The lidar setup is presented, including the telescope, the heterodyne detection system and a spectral reference system used to infer the absolute frequency of the laser and the ON-line/OFF-line energy difference. We investigate an Integrated-Path-DIAL measurement on a range of 426 m. Results compare well with an in-situ reference sensor (Picarro probe), and the estimate statistics show good agreement with theoretical error calculations. This lidar demonstrator has been called HELENA (Hybrid Emitter Lidar for ENvironmetal Applications). Once completed, it will feature an hybrid emitter combining a semiconductor laser, a high-power Tm-doped fiber amplifier stage, and a final Ho:YLF crystal single-pass amplification stage. This combination aims at benefitting of the versatility, compactness and alignment easiness of a fiber amplifier on one hand, and of the high-peak power attainable with a solid-state amplifier on the other hand. It could allow overcoming the traditional Brillouin limit met in fiber amplifiers, without sacrificing much in compactness and robustness.
Simon Le Méhauté, Philippe Benoit, Nicolas Cézard, Didier Goular, Christophe Planchat, Matthieu Valla, Agnès Dolfi-Bouteyre, Xavier Watremez, Hervé Delbarre
Here we report on the development of a new coherent-DIAL system as well as first quantitative measurements of simultaneous gas mixing ratio and radial wind-speed with the instrument. Integrated measurement of atmospheric methane (CH4) mixing ratio between the instrument and a hard-target located at 2:25 km has been conducted with a relative precision of nearly 20% in 17 s. The measurement procedure also gives information on integrated water vapor (H2O) mixing ratio.
Nicolas Cézard, Anasthase Liméry, Johan Bertrand, Simon Le Méhauté, Philippe Benoit, Didier Fleury, Didier Goular, Christophe Planchat, Matthieu Valla, Béatrice Augère, Agnès Dolfi-Bouteyre
The capability of Lidars to perform range-resolved gas profiles makes them an appealing choice for many applications. In order to address new remote sensing challenges, arising from industrial contexts, Onera currently develops two lidar systems, one Raman and one DIAL. On the Raman side, a high spatial-resolution multi-channel Raman Lidar is developed in partnership with the French National Radioactive Waste Management Agency (Andra). This development aims at enabling future monitoring of hydrogen gas and water vapor profiles inside disposal cells containing radioactive wastes. We report on the development and first tests of a three-channel Raman Lidar (H2, H2O, N2) designed to address this issue. Simultaneous hydrogen and water vapor profiles have been successfully performed along a 5m-long gas cell with 1m resolution at a distance of 85 m. On the DIAL side, a new instrumental concept is being explored and developed in partnership with Total E and P. The objective is to perform methane plume monitoring and flux assessment in the vicinity of industrials plants or platforms. For flux assessment, both gas concentration and air speed must be profiled by lidar. Therefore, we started developing a bi-function, all-fiber, coherent DIAL/Doppler Lidar. The first challenge was to design and build an appropriate fiber laser source. The achieved demonstrator delivers 200 W peak power, polarized, spectrally narrow (<15 MHz), 110 ns pulses of light out of a monomode fiber at 1645 nm. It fulfills the requirements for a future implementation in a bi-function Dial/Doppler lidar with km-range expectation. We report on the laser and lidar architecture, and on first lidar tests at 1645 nm.
Remote methane concentration measurement using a Differential Absorption Lidar system can be performed using a single-frequency pulsed laser source at 1645.55 nm. This wavelength cannot be efficiently amplified in conventional Erbium Doped Fiber Amplifier as the gain band stops around 1620 nm. We report on a single-frequency polarization-maintaining pulsed amplifier at 1645 nm relying on stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) in highly nonlinear silica fibers (HNLF). Considering that SRS converts pump photons to photons frequency-downshifted by 13.2 THz with a gain bandwidth of 2 THz, a 1545 nm pump can efficiently amplify a 1645 nm seed laser. The drawback of using a HNLF is that the single-frequency signal will also experience stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS) through its amplification. This issue has been partially solved by designing a two-stage amplification setup minimizing SBS. In the first stage, a 20 m piece of HNLF has been used so that the effective length of the amplified signal stays under SBS threshold. In the second stage, we used a 2.5 m piece of HNLF and high pump peak-power to significantly reduce the effective length, allowing more amplification. We report on generation of single-frequency 11 μJ energy pulses at 1645 nm corresponding to 150 W peak-power and 80 ns pulse duration at 20 kHz pulse repetition frequency.
Recent progress in fiber technology has enabled new laser designs along with all fiber lidar architectures. Their asset is
to avoid free-space optics, sparing lengthy alignment procedures and yielding compact setups that are well adapted for
field operations and on board applications thanks to their intrinsic vibration-resistant architectures. We present results in
remote sensing for disaster management recently achieved with fiber laser systems. Field trials of a 3-paths lidar
vibrometer for the remote study of modal parameters of buildings has shown that application-related constraints were
fulfilled and that the obtained results are consistent with simultaneous in situ seismic sensors measurements. Remote
multi-gas detection can be obtained using broadband infrared spectroscopy. Results obtained on methane concentration
measurement using an infrared supercontinuum fiber laser and analysis in the 3-4 μm band are reported. For gas flux
retrieval, air velocity measurement is also required. Long range scanning all-fiber wind lidars are now available thanks to
innovative laser architectures. High peak power highly coherent pulses can be extracted from Er3+:Yb3+ and Tm3+ active fibers using methods described in the paper. The additional laser power provides increased coherent lidar capability in range and scanning of large areas but also better system resistance to adverse weather conditions. Wind sensing at ranges beyond 10 km have been achieved and on-going tests of a scanning system dedicated to airport safety is reported.
In this paper, we first report the recent achievement of a mid-infrared supercontinuum fiber laser source in our
laboratory. Using fluoride fibers, we have generated a wavelength supercontinuum covering the whole 2-3.5μm range,
and delivering a power spectral density of 0.3 mW/nm on a large spectral range. Experimental results are presented. This
source can open opportunities for broadband remote sensing of multiple gas species in the atmosphere, especially above
3 μm, where numerous organic compounds have strong absorption signatures. Therefore, we consider a simple
Supercontinuum Laser Absorption Spectroscopy (SLAS) experiment, and we develop a numerical case study above
3 μm, involving a multi-component gas mixture. We first describe a method for modelling noisy spectroscopic signals.
Then we consider the inverse problem, and attempt to perform identification and quantitative estimation of the gas
mixture. After showing the inapplicability of a direct multi-linear regression, we focus on processing methods that use
complexity penalization principles, and show that they can address efficiently the identification/estimation problem.
Among various penalization criteria, those based on Minimum Description Length (MDL) approaches are shown to
perform particularly well. Finally, we apply these methods to preliminary experimental spectroscopic signals obtained
with supercontinuum sources in our laboratory.
We report the development of a 355-nm lidar system for short-range wind speed measurements, using a fringe-imaging Michelson interferometer as a spectral analyzer. The instrument principle is to deduce the wind speed from the phase variations of the two-wave interference pattern provided by the interferometer. A laboratory demonstrator has been realized, which was designed in an original way to minimize the sensitivity to phase fluctuations caused by thermo-mechanical disturbances and laser drifts. An accurate signal processing has been developed, providing with estimates of five fringe parameters: intensity, contrast, periodicity, angular orientation, and phase. It is implemented in two steps: the first step uses a Fourier transform analysis and the second step a maximum-likelihood estimator. To validate the instrument principle, measurement method and signal processing alltogether, a calibrated speed measurement experiment has been performed on hard target, for which the results are shown.
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