What Is Solid-State Lidar

Solid-state LiDAR is gaining traction as a promising technology that is cheaper, faster, and provides higher resolution than traditional LiDAR, with predictions that its price range could eventually fall below $100 per unit.

LiDAR, which stands for Light Detection and Ranging, is a sensing technology akin to RADAR. But, while radar detects objects by the reflection of radio waves off their surface, LiDAR illuminates them with a laser beam and detects the bounce-back of the laser signal.

Solid-state LiDAR is a form of LiDAR that does not require moving parts. Built entirely on a silicon chip, a solid-state LiDAR system is smaller and more resilient to vibrations—and oftentimes less expensive than an electromechanically-intensive traditional LiDAR system. Where a typical automotive LiDAR system was mounted to a vehicle and physically moved to change its direction, solid-state LiDAR is capable of adjusting its directional focus by changing the patterns of its optical emissions. This is obviously attractive to the designer of an autonomous vehicle as it eliminates the need for a swiveling LiDAR sensor mounted to a vehicle (or a multitude of LiDAR sensors locked in place to cover blind spots).