Design of a CMOS APD array for a 3-D camera based on the time of flight distance measurement

This paper presents the design of an array of avalanche photodiodes (APD) in standard CMOS technology for a 3-D camera. The distance measurement is based on the time of flight principle, more precisely on the phase-shift measurement method. The pixel is operated in permanent sinusoidal regime based on optoelectronic mixing technique. Circuit simulations allowed the architecture validation and the global performances to be predicted. Millimetric measurement resolution can be expected for a distance range of 18 m.