In recent years, the rapid development of LiDAR technology has played an increasingly important role in the field of scientific research and industry, giving new vitality to remote sensing, imaging, environmental perception and other fields. A special issue on "Innovation and application of LiDAR" was organized, which is around the single photon LiDAR, synthetic aperture LiDAR, FM continuous wave LiDAR, environmental factors LiDAR, imaging LiDAR, the new LiDAR precision measurement technology, as well as the recent main research progress. As a technical research reference and a exchange platform for scholars in related fields, this special issue will actively promote the research process of China's LiDAR technology.