Multiparametric tunable lidar system based on IR OPO laser sources

The present paper is devoted to the description of two distinct multiparametric lidar system presently under development. The first system is based on a Nd:YAG laser pumping a dye laser equipped with a dual wavelength device. The second lidar system is based on two optical parametric oscillator (OPO) lasers pumped by a Nd:YAG laser operating at a pulse repetition rate of 100 Hz. OPO lasers represent a new design for coherent radiation sources continuously tunable in the UV -- near IR range (up to 2 micrometer). This allows us to perform differential absorption lidar (DIAL) measurements in a spectral region where most of atmospheric pollutants display absorption lines. The selection of the wavelengths to be used for DIAL measurements is a non trivial task. In particular, a method to select the optimal (lambda) ON and (lambda) OFF has been developed and applied to several molecular gases. Both systems have been designed to carry out simultaneous measurements of atmospheric aerosols, water vapor profiles, temperature and density profiles, atmospheric transmissivity, and atmospheric pollutants concentration.