Light emitter, optical radar and vehicle

Abstract

The application discloses a light emitting device, an optical radar and a vehicle, and belongs to the technical field of optical radars. The light emitting device comprises a light emitting layer, at least two light emitting groups, each of which comprises a plurality of light sources, an optical layer formed on the light emitting layer, at least two groups of deflection elements, each of which comprises a plurality of deflection elements, and a driving circuit connected with the at least two light emitting groups and used for driving the at least two light emitting groups to emit light in sequence. The at least two groups of deflection elements are arranged in one-to-one correspondence with the at least two light emitting groups, and different groups of deflection elements have different deflection angles for light beams emitted by the light emitting groups. The light emitting device can be adapted to various vehicles such as traditional vehicles and electric vehicles, and can well meet the matching use requirements of intelligent driving and intelligent network systems.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of optical radar technology, and more particularly to a light emitter, optical radar, and vehicle. Background Technology

[0002] Vertical cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) are characterized by their small size, low threshold current, circular beam pattern, and ease of two-dimensional integration, and are widely used in fields such as lidar and three-dimensional sensing.

[0003] In applications such as blind spot lidar, lidar typically requires a very large field of view (FOV) to perceive a wide area of ​​the environment around the vehicle. Related technologies, in order to extend the vertical output of a vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) to a wide-angle scan, require the introduction of optical components such as rotating prisms, galvanometers, microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) micromirrors, or large-field-of-view diffraction optical elements outside the VCSEL. However, these introduced optical components lead to a complex optical system structure, which is detrimental to the miniaturization of lidar. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This application provides a light emitter, an optical radar, and a vehicle to at least partially solve the above-mentioned technical problems.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, according to a first aspect of this application, a light emitter is provided for use in optical radar. The light emitter includes: a light-emitting layer having at least two light-emitting groups, each light-emitting group including multiple light sources; an optical layer formed on the light-emitting layer, the optical layer including at least two deflection element groups, each deflection element group including multiple deflection elements, the deflection elements being configured to emit and deflect light emitted by the light sources; and a driving circuit connected to the at least two light-emitting groups and used to drive the at least two light-emitting groups to emit light sequentially; wherein the at least two deflection element groups are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence with the at least two light-emitting groups, and different deflection element groups have different deflection angles on the light beams emitted by the light-emitting groups.

[0006] Optionally, multiple deflection elements and multiple light sources are set up in a one-to-one correspondence.

[0007] Optionally, the light-emitting layer includes a substrate, and the light emission direction of all light sources is perpendicular to the substrate; in at least one deflection element group, the deflection element is a microlens, and the deflection element includes an incident surface and an exit surface, the exit surface is a spherical cap surface, and the orthographic projection of the light emission center of the light source on the incident surface and the orthographic projection of the vertex of the exit surface on the incident surface are spaced apart.

[0008] Optionally, at least two deflection element groups include a first deflection element group and a second deflection element group. The first deflection element group includes multiple first deflection elements, and the second deflection element group includes multiple second deflection elements. The exit surfaces of the first and second deflection elements are both spherical caps, and the light emitter satisfies at least one of the following conditions: the exit surfaces of the first and second deflection elements have different radii of curvature; the exit surfaces of the first and second deflection elements have different sags; in the first deflection element, the orthographic projection of the light emission center of the light source onto the incident surface and the orthographic projection of the vertex of the exit surface onto the incident surface have a first distance; in the second deflection element, the orthographic projection of the light emission center of the light source onto the incident surface and the orthographic projection of the vertex of the exit surface onto the incident surface have a second distance; the first distance and the second distance are not equal; the opening direction of the exit surface of the first deflection element is opposite to the opening direction of the exit surface of the second deflection element.

[0009] Optionally, the exiting surface satisfies at least one of the following relationships: 1μm≤Sag≤10μm; 10μm≤R≤50μm; 20μm≤D≤35μm; where Sag is the sag of the exiting surface, R is the radius of curvature of the exiting surface, and D is the diameter of the bottom of the spherical cap corresponding to the exiting surface.

[0010] Optionally, at least two deflection element groups include a first deflection element group and a second deflection element group. The first deflection element group includes a plurality of first deflection elements, and the second deflection element group includes a plurality of second deflection elements. Both the first and second deflection elements include an incident surface and an exit surface intersecting the incident surface. The exit surface is a plane, and the exit surfaces of the first and second deflection elements have different tilt angles.

[0011] Optionally, at least two light-emitting groups are spaced apart, and the light emitter also includes a driving circuit connected to the at least two light-emitting groups and used to drive the at least two light-emitting groups to emit light sequentially.

[0012] Optionally, the light-emitting layer includes a substrate, and multiple light sources are arrayed along a first direction and a second direction, the first direction and the second direction being parallel to the substrate, respectively.

[0013] Optionally, the light-emitting layer includes a planarization layer, on which the optical layer is formed.

[0014] According to a second aspect of this application, an optical radar is also provided, including the aforementioned emitter.

[0015] According to a third aspect of this application, a vehicle is also provided, including the aforementioned light emitter, or including the aforementioned optical radar.

[0016] The emitter in this embodiment of the application arranges at least two deflection element groups in a one-to-one correspondence with at least two light-emitting groups of the light-emitting layer, and different deflection element groups deflect the light beam emitted by the light-emitting groups at different angles. Furthermore, the at least two light-emitting groups are driven to emit light sequentially by a driving circuit, so that the direction of the emitted light beam can be switched between multiple different directions depending on the light-emitting group selectively driven by the driving circuit. In this way, the field of view covered by the emitted light beam can be increased by splicing out emitted light beams with different directions. Since the optical layer and the light-emitting layer are integrated, the deflection of the light beam is completed within the emitter. Therefore, it is not necessary to introduce optical elements such as rotating prisms, galvanometers, microelectromechanical system micromirrors, or large field-of-view diffraction optical elements for deflecting the light beam outside the emitter. This is beneficial to reducing the structural complexity of the optical system and the size and assembly cost of the optical radar, thereby facilitating the miniaturization of the optical radar.

[0017] Other features and advantages of this application will be described in detail in the following detailed description section. Attached Figure Description

[0018] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application, the accompanying drawings used in the description of the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of this application. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0019] To gain a more complete understanding of this application and its beneficial effects, the following description will be provided in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein the same reference numerals in the following description denote the same parts.

[0020] Figure 1 This is a schematic cross-sectional view of the light emitter provided in an exemplary embodiment of this disclosure; Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the two-dimensional addressable electronic control structure of the light emitter provided in an exemplary embodiment of this disclosure; Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the first deflecting element and the second deflecting element in the light emitter provided in an exemplary embodiment of this disclosure; Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the first deflection element and the second deflection element in another light emitter provided in an exemplary embodiment of this disclosure; Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram showing the relationship between the radius of curvature and the sagitta when the diameter of the bottom of the spherical cap of the deflection element provided in the exemplary embodiment of this application is the same; Figure 6 This is a cross-sectional structural diagram of a light emitter provided in another exemplary embodiment of this disclosure.

[0021] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures: 100, LED; 100A, channel; 1. Light-emitting layer; 10. Light-emitting group; 10A. First light-emitting group; 10B. Second light-emitting group; 10C. Third light-emitting group; 11. Light source; 12. Substrate; 13. N-type distributed Bragg reflector; 15. Active region; 17. P-type distributed Bragg reflector; 19. Planarization layer; 3. Optical layer; 30. Deflector group; 30A. First deflector group; 30B. Second deflector group; 30C. Third deflector group; 31. Deflector; 31A. First deflector; 31B. Second deflector; 311. Incident surface; 313. Exit surface; 5. Drive circuit; 51. P electrode; 53. N electrode; a) First straight line; b) Second straight line; X) First direction; Y) Second direction. Detailed Implementation

[0022] The technical solutions of the embodiments of this application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of this application, and not all of them. All other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art based on the embodiments of this application without creative effort are within the protection scope of this application.

[0023] According to the first aspect of this application, see Figure 1 and Figure 2 This application provides a light emitter 100 for use in optical radar. The light emitter 100 includes a light-emitting layer 1, an optical layer 3, and a driving circuit 5, wherein the optical layer 3 is formed on the light-emitting layer 1.

[0024] The light-emitting layer 1 has at least two light-emitting groups 10, and each light-emitting group 10 includes multiple light sources 11.

[0025] The optical layer 3 includes at least two deflection element groups 30, each deflection element group 30 including a plurality of deflection elements 31, the deflection elements 31 being configured to emit and deflect light emitted by the light source 11.

[0026] The driving circuit 5 is connected to at least two light-emitting groups 10 and is used to drive the at least two light-emitting groups 10 to emit light sequentially. In this arrangement, at least two deflection element groups 30 are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence with at least two light-emitting groups 10, and different deflection element groups 30 have different deflection angles on the light beams emitted by the light-emitting groups 10.

[0027] It is understandable that the light source 11 is the area in the light-emitting layer 1 that realizes the light-emitting function, and multiple light sources 11 form a light-emitting group 10. The deflection element group 30 is the optical area in the optical layer 3 that corresponds to the light-emitting group 10. The fact that at least two deflection element groups 30 are set in a one-to-one correspondence with at least two light-emitting groups 10 means that one deflection element group 30 corresponds to one light-emitting group 10, and the light emitted from each light-emitting group 10 is directed towards a deflection element group 30 corresponding to the light-emitting group 10.

[0028] It can also be understood that the different deflection angles of the beams emitted by different deflection element groups 30 mean that the propagation direction of the beams emitted by different deflection element groups 30 is different from the propagation direction of the initial beam emitted by the light-emitting group 10, that is, the beams emitted by different deflection element groups 30 point in different directions.

[0029] In some embodiments, the light-emitting layer 1 has three light-emitting groups 10, namely a first light-emitting group 10A, a second light-emitting group 10B and a third light-emitting group 10C; the optical layer 3 includes three deflection element groups 30, namely a first deflection element group 30A, a second deflection element group 30B and a third deflection element group 30C.

[0030] It is also understood that each deflection element 31 in each deflection element group 30 deflects the light emitted by the light source 11 at the same or approximately the same angle, thereby controlling the divergence angle of the light beam emitted by the light-emitting group 10 after being deflected by the deflection element group 30.

[0031] It should be noted that the actual light source 11 has certain physical dimensions; for example, the diameter of the light source 11 is from a few micrometers to tens of micrometers.

[0032] In some embodiments, the deflecting element 31 may be a microlens (such as a convex lens, a concave lens, or a Fresnel lens), a microprism, or a diffractive optical element (such as a superlens), and each deflecting element 31 covers at least one light source 11. This disclosure does not specifically limit this.

[0033] It should be noted that the same deflection element group 30 may include at least one of microlenses, microprisms, and diffractive optical elements. That is, a deflection element group 30 may be composed of multiple deflection elements 31 of the same type or of different types. Different deflection element groups 30 may include deflection elements 31 of the same type or of different types.

[0034] It should also be noted that when one of the light-emitting groups 10 is selectively driven, the multiple light sources 11 in the light-emitting group 10 emit light and emit beams to the deflection element group 30 corresponding to the light-emitting group 10. After being deflected by the deflection element 31, the beams are emitted at a deflection angle corresponding to the deflection element group 30. When switching to another light-emitting group 10, the deflection element group 30 through which the beam passes is switched accordingly, and the direction of the emitted beam changes accordingly.

[0035] It should also be noted that at least two light-emitting groups 10 can emit light sequentially from the light-emitting group 10 corresponding to the beam with a large deflection angle to the light-emitting group 10 corresponding to the beam with a small deflection angle, or they can emit light sequentially from the light-emitting group 10 corresponding to the beam with a small deflection angle to the light-emitting group 10 corresponding to the beam with a large deflection angle.

[0036] It should also be noted that the deflection angle can be continuous or discrete. This disclosure does not impose a specific limitation on it.

[0037] The above technical solution, by setting at least two deflection element groups 30 in a one-to-one correspondence with at least two light-emitting groups 10 of the light-emitting layer 1, and by making different deflection element groups 30 deflect the light beam emitted by the light-emitting groups 10 at different angles, and by driving at least two light-emitting groups 10 to emit light sequentially through the driving circuit 5, allows the direction of the emitted light beam of the emitter 100 to switch between multiple different directions depending on the light-emitting group 10 selectively driven by the driving circuit 5. In this way, the field of view covered by the emitted light beam of the emitter 100 can be increased by splicing out emitted light beams with different directions. Since the optical layer 3 and the light-emitting layer 1 are integrated, the deflection of the light beam is completed within the emitter 100. Therefore, it is not necessary to introduce optical elements such as rotating prisms, galvanometers, microelectromechanical system micromirrors, or large field-of-view diffraction optical elements for deflecting the light beam outside the emitter 100. This is beneficial to reducing the structural complexity of the optical system and the size and assembly cost of the optical radar, thereby facilitating the miniaturization of the optical radar. Meanwhile, compared to beam pointing switching achieved through complex mechanical motion, since the switching of the emitted beam pointing is achieved by selectively driving different light-emitting groups 10 through the drive circuit 5 (i.e., the switching of the emitted beam pointing is achieved through the switching of electrical signal paths), there is no need to set up mechanical moving parts in the optical radar. This not only improves the scanning speed of the emitter 100, but also allows the emitter 100 to cover a large field of view in a completely solid-state manner. In addition, compared to beam pointing switching achieved through complex mechanical motion, the switching of the emitted beam pointing is achieved through the switching of electrical signal paths, which also helps to reduce the risk of vibration and shock caused by mechanical motion and the risk of reduced reliability.

[0038] like Figure 1 As shown, in some embodiments, multiple deflection elements 31 and multiple light sources 11 are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence.

[0039] It should be noted that the one-to-one correspondence between the multiple deflection elements 31 and the multiple light sources 11 means that each light source 11 has a deflection element 31 on its light-emitting side. When the light source 11 emits light, the light emitted from the light source 11 is directed towards the deflection element 31 corresponding to the light source 11 and is emitted through the deflection element 31. Since the deflection elements 31 and the light sources 11 correspond to each other in number, the emitted light from each light source 11 within the same light-emitting group 10 can obtain a consistent deflection effect. Moreover, it is beneficial to suppress the divergence angle of the beam within the same light-emitting group 10, thereby improving the collimation effect of the emitted beam.

[0040] It is understood that in some other embodiments, each deflection element 31 may also correspond to two, three, four, or other light sources 11. It should be noted that each deflection element 31 can be configured according to the requirements for the divergence angle of the light beam after passing through the deflection element group 30.

[0041] like Figure 1 As shown, in some embodiments, the light-emitting layer 1 includes a substrate 12, and the light-emitting direction of all light sources 11 is perpendicular to the substrate 12.

[0042] It is understandable that the fact that the light emission direction of all light sources 11 is perpendicular to the substrate 12 means that the light source 11 is a vertically emitting light source 11, rather than a side-emitting light source 11.

[0043] like Figure 1 and Figure 3 As shown, in at least one deflection element group 30, the deflection element 31 is a microlens, and the deflection element 31 includes an incident surface 311 and an exit surface 313. The exit surface 313 is a spherical cap surface, and the orthographic projection of the light emission center of the light source 11 on the incident surface 311 and the orthographic projection of the vertex of the exit surface 313 on the incident surface 311 are spaced apart.

[0044] It is understandable that the incident surface 311 is the surface of the deflecting element 31 facing the light source 11, and the exit surface 313 is the surface of the deflecting element 31 away from the light source 11.

[0045] It should be noted that the alternating arrangement of the orthographic projection of the light-emitting center of the light source 11 onto the incident surface 311 and the orthographic projection of the vertex of the exit surface 313 onto the incident surface 311 can be understood as follows: along a direction parallel to the incident surface 311, the light-emitting center of the light source 11 and the vertex of the exit surface 313 are offset from each other and do not coincide. That is, the deflecting element 31 is off-axis relative to the light source 11 corresponding to the deflecting element 31, or in other words, the deflecting element 31 and the light source 11 can be offset one-to-one. By making the deflecting element 31 a microlens, the exit surface 313 a spherical cap, and the alternating arrangement of the orthographic projection of the light-emitting center of the light source 11 onto the incident surface 311 and the orthographic projection of the vertex of the exit surface 313 onto the incident surface 311, the exit surface 313 can deflect the light beam while simultaneously collimating it.

[0046] like Figure 3 As shown, the light-emitting center of the light source 11 is located on the first straight line a, and the vertex of the exit surface 313 is located on the second straight line b. The first straight line a and the second straight line b are perpendicular to the incident surface 311.

[0047] like Figure 1 , Figure 3 and Figure 4 As shown, in some embodiments, at least two deflection element groups 30 include a first deflection element group 30A and a second deflection element group 30B. The first deflection element group 30A includes a plurality of first deflection elements 31A, and the second deflection element group 30B includes a plurality of second deflection elements 31B. The emission surfaces 313 of the first deflection element 31A and the second deflection element 31B are both spherical caps, and the emitter 100 satisfies at least one of the following conditions: the emission surfaces 313 of the first deflection element 31A and the second deflection element 31B have different radii of curvature; the emission surfaces 313 of the first deflection element 31A and the second deflection element 31B have different radii of curvature; the emission surfaces 313 of the first deflection element 31A and the second deflection element 31B have different radii of curvature. The exit surfaces 313 of the two deflection elements 31B have different sags; in the first deflection element 31A, the orthographic projection of the light-emitting center of the light source 11 onto the incident surface 311 and the orthographic projection of the vertex of the exit surface 313 onto the incident surface 311 have a first distance L1; in the second deflection element 31B, the orthographic projection of the light-emitting center of the light source 11 onto the incident surface 311 and the orthographic projection of the vertex of the exit surface 313 onto the incident surface 311 have a second distance L2; the first distance L1 and the second distance L2 are not equal; the opening direction of the exit surface 313 of the first deflection element 31A is opposite to the opening direction of the exit surface 313 of the second deflection element 31B.

[0048] It is understandable that the above four conditions can be met individually or in combination.

[0049] It can also be understood that the radius of curvature is the radius of the sphere corresponding to the spherical cap, the sag is the height of the spherical cap between its vertex and its base, and the first distance L1 and the second distance L2 are both measured along a direction parallel to the incident surface 311. The radius of curvature of the exit surface 313, the sag of the exit surface 313, and the distance between the light-emitting center of the light source 11 and the vertex of the exit surface 313 all affect the deflection direction of the light beam after exiting the exit surface 313. By making the exit surface 313 of the first deflecting element 31A and the exit surface 313 of the second deflecting element 31B differ in at least one of the radius of curvature, sag, and the distance between the light-emitting center of the light source 11 and the vertex of the exit surface 313, the following can be achieved: The light beam is refracted by the exit surface 313 of the first deflection element 31A and then exits at the first deflection angle; When the second deflecting element 31B deflects the light beam, the light beam is refracted by the exit surface 313 of the second deflecting element 31B and then exits at the second deflection angle. The second deflection angle is not equal to the first deflection angle.

[0050] That is, the beams emitted from the first deflection element group 30A and the second deflection element group 30B point in different directions. Since the above differences can be achieved by adjusting at least one of the surface shape and surface shape parameters of the emission surface 313, there is no need to set additional optical elements for beams with different directions, which is beneficial to reduce the thickness of the optical layer 3 and simplify the processing of the optical layer 3.

[0051] It is also understandable that, such as Figure 4 As shown, the opening direction of the exit surface 313 of the first deflecting element 31A is opposite to the opening direction of the exit surface 313 of the second deflecting element 31B. This can be understood as follows: the exit surface 313 of one deflecting element 31 is convex (e.g., a convex lens), and the exit surface 313 of the other deflecting element 31 is concave (e.g., a concave lens). Figure 1 As shown, by way of example, the exit surface 313 of different deflection elements 31 are all convex surfaces.

[0052] In some embodiments, the exit surface 313 satisfies at least one of the following relationships: 1μm≤Sag≤10μm; 10μm≤R≤50μm; 20μm≤D≤35μm. Wherein, Sag is the sag of the exit surface 313, R is the radius of curvature of the exit surface 313, and D is the diameter of the bottom of the spherical cap corresponding to the exit surface 313.

[0053] It is understandable that the elevation Sag, the radius of curvature R, and the diameter D of the bottom of the spherical cap together determine the surface shape of the exit surface 313, and the elevation Sag, the radius of curvature R, and the diameter D of the bottom of the spherical cap satisfy Sag=R. √(R² (D / 2)²).

[0054] It should be noted that when the light beam emitted from the light source 11 strikes the exiting surface 313, the shape of the spherical cap surface of the exiting surface 313 determines the incident angle of the light beam at the exiting surface 313, and the exiting direction of the refracted light beam is determined by the incident angle. When at least one of the sag, radius of curvature R, and diameter D of the bottom of the spherical cap takes a value within the range of the above-mentioned relationship, the light beam obtains a corresponding deflection angle after being refracted by the exiting surface 313. Among them, the smaller the radius of curvature R, the stronger the deflection ability of the exiting surface 313 to the light beam; the larger the radius of curvature R, the weaker the deflection ability of the exiting surface 313 to the light beam; the larger the sag, the larger the size occupied by the exiting surface 313 along the exiting direction. By ensuring that the exit surface 313 satisfies at least one of the following three relationships: 1μm≤Sag≤10μm, 10μm≤R≤50μm, and 20μm≤D≤35μm, the sagitta Sag, the radius of curvature R, and the diameter D of the bottom of the spherical cap are within a range that is easy to process and can provide sufficient deflection capability. At the same time, when the radius of curvature R is within the above range, the exit surface 313 can deflect the beam incident along the thickness direction of the substrate 12 when the sagitta Sag is small, which is beneficial to achieve grouping control of beam direction with a small structural size.

[0055] It should also be noted that the above three relationships can be satisfied individually or in combination; when the sag, radius of curvature R, and diameter D of the bottom of the spherical cap are all the same, the greater the distance between the light emission center of the light source 11 and the vertex of the emission surface 313, the greater the deflection angle of the light by the deflection element 31; such as Figure 5 As shown, with the same diameter D at the bottom of the spherical cap, the smaller the radius of curvature R, the larger the sag Sag, and the higher the ability of the microlens to deflect light; the larger the radius of curvature R, the smaller the sag Sag, and the lower the ability of the microlens to deflect light.

[0056] It should also be noted that, within the same deflection element group 30, while ensuring that different deflection elements 31 have the same deflection angle for light, different deflection elements 31 can have the same sag, radius of curvature R, and diameter D of the bottom of the spherical cap, or they can have different sag, radius of curvature R, and diameter D of the bottom of the spherical cap.

[0057] It should also be noted that there are many processes for fabricating microlenses, such as dry photolithography etching, thermal reflow, and nanoimprint lithography.

[0058] Taking the fabrication of microlenses by dry photolithography etching as an example, the fabrication method of microlenses includes steps S1 to S4.

[0059] Step S1: Photoresist coating and patterning.

[0060] A layer of photoresist is spin-coated onto the light-emitting layer 1, and a mask is used to expose the photoresist to define the initial pattern of the microlens array.

[0061] Among them, photoresist can be either positive or negative.

[0062] Step S2: Exposure and development to form a photoresist mask pattern.

[0063] Photoresist mask patterns are typically planar arrays of microlens units such as circles and hexagons.

[0064] Step S3: Dry etching to form the microlens profile.

[0065] By utilizing the controllable anisotropy of dry etching, photoresist mask patterns can be transformed into three-dimensional microlens structures with desired radii of curvature and contours (such as spherical or aspherical surfaces).

[0066] Step S4: Remove the mask.

[0067] After etching the microlens structure, remove any remaining photoresist and / or hard mask, and clean the area to remove all etching byproducts and residues.

[0068] like Figure 6 As shown, in some embodiments, at least two deflection element groups 30 include a first deflection element group 30A and a second deflection element group 30B. The first deflection element group 30A includes a plurality of first deflection elements 31A, and the second deflection element group 30B includes a plurality of second deflection elements 31B. Both the first deflection element 31A and the second deflection element 31B include an incident surface 311 and an exit surface 313 intersecting the incident surface 311. The exit surface 313 is a plane, and the exit surface 313 of the first deflection element 31A and the exit surface 313 of the second deflection element 31B have different tilt angles.

[0069] It is understandable that the intersection of the exit surface 313 and the incident surface 311 means that the exit surface 313 is inclined relative to the incident surface 311, and the inclination angle is the angle between the exit surface 313 and the incident surface 311. The different inclination angles mean that the angle between the exit surface 313 and the incident surface 311 of the first deflecting element 31A and the angle between the exit surface 313 and the incident surface 311 of the second deflecting element 31B are not equal. Among them, the inclination angle between the exit surface 313 and the incident surface 311 corresponds to the wedge angle of the microprism. When the light beam emitted from the light source 11 enters the deflecting element 31 through the incident surface 311, the light beam is refracted at the exit surface 313. Since the inclination angles of the exit surface 313 of the first deflecting element 31A and the exit surface 313 of the second deflecting element 31B are different, the exit direction of the light beam after refraction by the first deflecting element 31A is different from the exit direction of the light beam after refraction by the second deflecting element 31B.

[0070] It should be noted that, compared to microlenses, microprisms are more advantageous in reducing the processing difficulty of optical layer 3; compared to microprisms, when the coverage field of view of the emitter 100 is the same, microlenses are more advantageous in reducing the thickness of optical layer 3 and improving the collimation effect of the beam.

[0071] In some embodiments, the electrodes of all the light sources 11 corresponding to the driving circuit 5 are not a single integral electrode, but are divided into at least two or more P-type electrode partitions formed by photolithography and etching processes, thus isolating each other. The array of N electrodes is divided into sections. The P electrode 51 of each light-emitting group 10 is independently led out and connected to an external drive control circuit, thereby realizing "point control" independent addressing of each region, that is, any light-emitting group 10 can be driven to emit light independently in a time-division selective manner.

[0072] like Figure 2 As shown, in some embodiments, at least two light-emitting groups 10 are arranged at intervals.

[0073] like Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, in some embodiments, multiple light sources 11 are arrayed along a first direction X and a second direction Y, with the first direction X and the second direction Y being parallel to the substrate 12, respectively.

[0074] It is understandable that the array distribution of multiple light sources 11 along the first direction X and the second direction Y parallel to the substrate 12 means that the multiple light sources 11 are arranged in a two-dimensional array in a plane parallel to the substrate 12.

[0075] In some embodiments, the first direction X and the second direction Y are perpendicular to each other. It is understood that the first direction X and the second direction Y may also be at an angle of 80°, 82°, 85°, 87°, or 89°, etc. This disclosure does not specifically limit this.

[0076] In some embodiments, at least two light-emitting groups 10 are arranged sequentially along a first direction X. It is understood that in other embodiments, multiple light-emitting groups 10 may also be arranged in an array.

[0077] It should be noted that by arranging at least two light-emitting groups 10 sequentially along the first direction X and distributing multiple light sources 11 in an array along the first direction X and the second direction Y, it is more advantageous to arrange the electrodes of all light sources 11, thereby increasing the number of light-emitting groups 10 that can be selectively driven in a plane parallel to the substrate 12 to increase the emitted beams of different directions, which is beneficial to increasing the field of view of the light emitter 100.

[0078] like Figure 2As shown, in some embodiments, the driving circuit 5 includes a P electrode 51 and an N electrode 53. Each deflection element group 30 has a P electrode 51 on each of its opposite sides along the second direction Y, and at least two deflection element groups 30 have an N electrode 53 on each of their opposite sides along the first direction X.

[0079] like Figure 1 As shown, in some embodiments, the light-emitting layer 1 further includes a planarization layer 19, on which the optical layer 3 is formed. By including the planarization layer 19 in the light-emitting layer 1 and forming the optical layer 3 on the planarization layer 19, the optical layer 3 is fabricated on a flat surface. Since the planarization layer 19 has a planarizing effect on the surface undulations of the light-emitting layer 1, it creates conditions for the high-precision photolithography process of the subsequent deflection element 31. Therefore, the influence of the surface morphology of the light-emitting layer 1 on the deflection element 31 can be reduced, thereby improving the process accuracy and optical quality of each deflection element 31 in the optical layer 3 and improving the consistency between the optical parameters of the deflection element 31 and the design values. At the same time, the planarization layer 19 can also protect the light source 11 located below it.

[0080] In some embodiments, the planarization layer 19 may be a silicon dioxide layer or a silicon nitride layer deposited on the light-emitting layer 1, or other dielectric layers capable of providing a flat surface.

[0081] like Figure 1 As shown, in some embodiments, the light-emitting layer 1 further includes an N-type distributed Bragg reflector 13, an active region 15, and a P-type distributed Bragg reflector 17 sequentially stacked on the substrate 12. The substrate 12, the N-type distributed Bragg reflector 13, the active region 15, and the P-type distributed Bragg reflector 17 together constitute multiple vertical resonant cavities, and multiple light sources 11 are formed by multiple vertical resonant cavities. The substrate 12 can be a gallium arsenide substrate 12. The N-type distributed Bragg reflector 13, the active region 15, and the P-type distributed Bragg reflector 17 can be sequentially formed on the substrate 12 by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition. The active region 15 can be a multi-quantum well active region 15.

[0082] In some embodiments, the deflection element 31 may be made of an optical material compatible with the process of the light-emitting layer 1, so that the deflection element can be formed directly on the wafer of the light-emitting layer 1.

[0083] like Figure 2As shown, in some embodiments, the light emitter 100 further comprises a plurality of channels 100A, which extend from the optical layer 3 to the substrate 12 and extend along a second direction Y. The plurality of channels 100A are spaced apart along a first direction X. The plurality of channels 100A space different light-emitting groups 10, different deflection element groups 30, and different P electrodes 51 and N electrodes 53 respectively control different light-emitting groups 10. The arrangement of the channels 100A simplifies the layout of the driving circuit 5.

[0084] In the above embodiments, the optical layer 3 may further include a collimating lens group, which includes a plurality of collimating lenses, and the collimating lens group is configured corresponding to the light-emitting group 10 of the light-emitting layer 1.

[0085] It should also be noted that the light emitter in the above embodiments can be adapted to various types of vehicles, such as traditional vehicles and electric vehicles, and can well meet the supporting requirements of intelligent driving and intelligent connected systems.

[0086] According to a second aspect of this application, an optical radar is also provided, which includes the aforementioned emitter 100. This optical radar possesses all the beneficial effects of the aforementioned emitter 100, which will not be elaborated further herein.

[0087] It is understandable that optical radar is a device that achieves detection and ranging by emitting a beam of light into space and receiving the echo reflected from the target. The inclusion of a transmitter 100 in an optical radar means that the transmitter 100 serves as the transmitting end of the optical radar, and the transmitter 100 can be installed inside the housing of the optical radar.

[0088] When the optical radar is working, the emitter 100 selectively drives different light-emitting groups 10 in sequence, and the optical radar emits beams in different directions at different times to cover the preset field of view.

[0089] Since the switching of the emitted beam direction of the emitter 100 is achieved by selectively driving different light-emitting groups 10, there is no need to set up scanning or deflecting optical components such as rotating prisms, galvanometers or microelectromechanical system micromirrors in the optical radar. Therefore, it is beneficial to simplify the optical path structure of the optical radar, reduce the size of the optical radar and reduce the assembly cost of the optical radar. At the same time, it is beneficial to reduce the risk of reliability reduction caused by mechanical movement.

[0090] It should also be noted that the optical radar in the above embodiments is adaptable to various types of vehicles, such as traditional vehicles and electric vehicles, and can well meet the supporting requirements of intelligent driving and intelligent connected systems. According to a third aspect of this application, a vehicle is also provided, the vehicle including the above-described emitter 100 or the above-described optical radar. This vehicle has all the beneficial effects of the above-described emitter 100 or the above-described optical radar, which will not be elaborated further here.

[0091] The vehicle may be a gasoline-powered vehicle, a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle, or a new energy vehicle, etc., and this disclosure does not make any specific restrictions.

[0092] It should also be noted that the vehicle can also be an L2, L3, L4 or other autonomous driving vehicle, but this disclosure does not make any specific restrictions.

[0093] Understandably, the emitter 100 or the optical radar can be mounted on the vehicle body to sense the environment around the vehicle. When the vehicle is in motion, the emitter 100 selectively drives different light-emitting groups 10 in sequence, and the emitter 100 or the optical radar emits beams in different directions around the vehicle in sequence to sense the environment around the vehicle.

[0094] Since the switching of the emitted beam direction of the emitter 100 is achieved by selectively driving different light-emitting groups 10, it is beneficial for the vehicle to achieve a large field of view perception of the surrounding environment in an all-solid-state manner, and it is also beneficial to reduce the space occupied by the sensing device on the vehicle and the vehicle's assembly cost.

[0095] In the description of this application, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of technical features indicated. Therefore, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more features. In the description of this application, "multiple" means two or more, unless otherwise explicitly specified.

[0096] In the above embodiments, the descriptions of each embodiment have different focuses. For parts not described in detail in a certain embodiment, please refer to the relevant descriptions in other embodiments.

[0097] The embodiments, implementation methods, and related technical features of this application can be combined and substituted for each other without conflict.

[0098] The above are merely preferred embodiments of this application and are not intended to limit this application in any way. Any simple modifications, equivalent changes, and alterations made to the above embodiments based on the technical essence of this application without departing from the scope of the technical solution of this application shall still fall within the scope of the technical solution of this application.

Claims

1. A light emitter (100) for use in optical radar, characterized in that, The light emitter (100) includes: The light-emitting layer (1) has at least two light-emitting groups (10), each of the light-emitting groups (10) including a plurality of light sources (11); the optical layer (3) is formed on the light-emitting layer (1), the optical layer (3) including at least two deflection element groups (30), each of the deflection element groups (30) including a plurality of deflection elements (31), the deflection elements (31) being configured to emit and deflect light emitted by the light sources (11); A driving circuit (5) is connected to the at least two light-emitting groups (10) and is used to drive the at least two light-emitting groups (10) to emit light sequentially; In this arrangement, at least two of the deflection element groups (30) are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence with at least two of the light-emitting groups (10), and different deflection element groups (30) have different deflection angles on the light beams emitted by the light-emitting groups (10).

2. The light emitter (100) according to claim 1, characterized in that, The multiple deflection elements (31) and the multiple light sources (11) are arranged in a one-to-one correspondence.

3. The light emitter (100) according to claim 2, characterized in that, The light-emitting layer (1) includes a substrate (12), and the light-emitting direction of all the light sources (11) is perpendicular to the substrate (12); in at least one of the deflection element groups (30), the deflection element (31) is a microlens, and the deflection element (31) includes an incident surface (311) and an exit surface (313), the exit surface (313) is a spherical cap surface, and the orthographic projection of the light-emitting center of the light source (11) on the incident surface (311) and the orthographic projection of the vertex of the exit surface (313) on the incident surface (311) are spaced apart.

4. The light emitter (100) according to claim 3, characterized in that, The at least two deflection element groups (30) include a first deflection element group (30A) and a second deflection element group (30B). The first deflection element group (30A) includes a plurality of first deflection elements (31A), and the second deflection element group (30B) includes a plurality of second deflection elements (31B). The emission surface (313) of the first deflection element (31A) and the emission surface (313) of the second deflection element (31B) are both spherical cap surfaces, and the light emitter (100) satisfies at least one of the following conditions: The exit surface (313) of the first deflector (31A) and the exit surface (313) of the second deflector (31B) have different radii of curvature. The exit surface (313) of the first deflecting element (31A) and the exit surface (313) of the second deflecting element (31B) have different sagittal heights; In the first deflection element (31A), the orthographic projection of the light-emitting center of the light source (11) onto the incident surface (311) and the orthographic projection of the vertex of the exit surface (313) onto the incident surface (311) have a first distance; In the second deflection element (31B), the orthographic projection of the light-emitting center of the light source (11) onto the incident surface (311) and the orthographic projection of the vertex of the exit surface (313) onto the incident surface (311) have a second distance; the first distance and the second distance are not equal; The opening direction of the exit surface (313) of the first deflecting element (31A) is opposite to the opening direction of the exit surface (313) of the second deflecting element (31B).

5. The light emitter (100) according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that, The exit surface (313) satisfies at least one of the following relationships: 1μm≤Sag≤10μm; 10μm≤R≤50μm; 20μm≤D≤35μm; Wherein, Sag is the sagitta of the exit surface (313), R is the radius of curvature of the exit surface (313), and D is the diameter of the bottom of the spherical cap corresponding to the exit surface (313).

6. The light emitter (100) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The at least two deflection element groups (30) include a first deflection element group (30A) and a second deflection element group (30B). The first deflection element group (30A) includes a plurality of first deflection elements (31A), and the second deflection element group (30B) includes a plurality of second deflection elements (31B). Both the first deflection element (31A) and the second deflection element (31B) include an incident surface (311) and an exit surface (313) intersecting the incident surface (311). The exit surface (313) is a plane, and the exit surface (313) of the first deflection element (31A) and the exit surface (313) of the second deflection element (31B) have different tilt angles.

7. The light emitter (100) according to claim 1, characterized in that, The at least two light-emitting groups (10) are spaced apart.

8. The light emitter (100) according to claim 7, characterized in that, The light-emitting layer (1) includes a substrate (12), and the plurality of light sources (11) are arrayed along a first direction (X) and a second direction (Y), the first direction (X) and the second direction (Y) being parallel to the substrate (12) respectively.

9. The light emitter (100) according to claim 1, characterized in that, The light-emitting layer (1) includes a planarization layer (19), and the optical layer (3) is formed on the planarization layer (19).

10. An optical radar, characterized in that, Includes the light emitter (100) as described in any one of claims 1-9.

11. A vehicle, characterized in that, Includes the emitter (100) as described in any one of claims 1-9, or the optical radar as described in claim 10.

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