Method and apparatus for resolving relative times-of-arrival of light pulses
US6657706B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Mar 27, 2002 |
| Grant date | Dec 2, 2003 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Mar 27, 2022 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG01S17/894
- WIPO fieldMeasurement
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
A method and apparatus for resolving relative times-of-arrival of a plurality of light pulses includes a plurality of drift-field detectors. Each drift-field detector includes a light sensor and a semiconductor drift region. Each light sensor generates an electrical charge from at least one of the plurality of light pulses. Each semiconductor drift region receives the electrical charge from its respective light sensor and, pursuant to an electric field therein, produces a spatial charge distribution. The spatial charge distribution for each of the semiconductor drift regions is stored in an analog storage device associated therewith. The relative positions of the charge distributions in the semiconductor drift regions are used to calculate the relative times-of-arrival of the light pulses.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.