APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR DRIVING LASER DIODE ARRAYS WITH HIGH-POWER PULSED CURRENTS USING LOW-SIDE LINEAR DRIVE WITH LASER DIODE ARRAY PROTECTION AND POWER EFFICIENCY MONITORING AND ADJUSTMENT

摘要

A multi-stage laser drive circuit includes a variable common potential source, a PA light-emitting array between a storage capacitor and a current node, first and second low-side linear current sinks in electrical communication with the current node, and a second master oscillator (MO) light-emitting array in electrical communication between the current node and the first low side linear current sink. A trickle current circuit drives a low-value trickle current through the arrays, and a sense circuit senses the trickle current. Also, the headroom voltage across a pass element in the first low-side linear constant current sink is monitored and adjusted for maximum efficiency.