Simulation of a Low Cost Correlation LIDAR

Our simulation confirms the feasibility of a low cost system with modest capabilities that overcomes the main hindrances of the wide spread use of LIDAR. The system should be able to measure profiles of aerosols and molecules within a few seconds to several minutes depending on the required spatial resolution and the background light. The new approach is based on the correlation of the transmitted Pseudo Noise (PN) signal and the received signal. Thus the laser peak power is within the range of CW diode lasers.