Nanotechnology in Image Sensors #2

Electronics Web: Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the University of California at Berkeley have created all-integrated sensor circuit based on nanowire arrays, combining light sensors and electronics made of different crystalline materials.

For their integrated nanowire photosensor circuitry, Ali Javey group in Berkeley Lab's Materials Sciences Division used cadmium selenide nanowires as visible-light sensors. For the electronics, nanowires with a germanium core and a silicon shell were the basis of field-effect transistors that would amplify the current produced by the photosensors in response to light by five orders of magnitude.

The nanowires density is not that remarkable comparing with the modern 65-90nm CMOS processes:



About 80% of pixels are connected - impressive, considering the simple technology used.