Motion nonlinearity of gimbaled micromirror in omnidirectional scanning for LiDAR application*

Abstract

Gimbaled MEMS mirror for omnidirectional LiDAR often suffers strong nonlinearity. The motion equations of the mirror are derived analytically. The motion nonlinearity is explained from the interaction between the motions on two axes. Moreover, a structural condition for stable mirror operation is found from the equations. In order to investigate basic characteristics of omnidirectional scanning, a gimbaled micromirror is fabricated by silicon SOI micromachining and tested.