Sensitivity analysis of lidar inversion algorithms

The lidar inversion algorithms based on near-end and far-end boundary conditions are reviewed and the recently proposed algorithm featuring the calculation of the boundary value at some middle range is expressed in analytic form. A theoretical assessment of the stability of all three algorithms to uncertainties in the boundary value and assumed backscatter/extinction model is then carried out. It is confirmed that the far-end solution is the most stable in practical applications and that the middle-range algorithm is only a variant of the unstable near-end solution.