Sony to Use Surface Structures to Enhance Blue Color Sensitivity

Sony presentation "Visible Light Sensitivity Enhancement of CMOS Image Sensor with Pseudo High Refractive Index Film Integrated by Directed Self-Assembly Process" by I. Oshiyama, T. Shigetoshi, I. Mita, N. Sumitani, T. Oinoue, S. Saito, T. Okawa, Y. Ebiko, K. Yokochi, Y. Kitano, Y. Hagimoto, T. Hirano, and H. Iwamoto won "Best Interactive Paper Award" at 2021 IEEE Electron Devices Technology & Manufacturing Conference (EDTM) in Chengdu, China.

"We have developed a back-illuminated CMOS image sensor (BI -CIS) using a pseudo high refractive index film (pHRF) consisting of an array of minute holes. The new process architecture for the low reflectivity surface is achieved by integrating the directed self-assembly (DSA) process with the conventional process. This is the first report of an image sensor fabricated using the DSA process. The proposed sensor has low dark current and has enhanced sensitivity for wavelengths ranging from 400 nm to 550 nm."

Shanghai University Integrates Optical AI Engine on Top of a Regular Image Sensor

University of Shanghai for Science and Technology publishes Nature paper "Nanoprinted high-neuron-density optical linear perceptrons performing near-infrared inference on a CMOS chip" by Elena Goi, Xi Chen, Qiming Zhang, Benjamin P. Cumming, Steffen Schoenhardt, Haitao Luan & Min Gu .

“By employing high-precision 3D nanofabrication technology, we are able to add AI optical elements to industry-standard imaging sensors. This is comparable to putting tailored, task-specific smart glasses on the imaging sensors, which process the incoming optical information before it is even detected,” says Elena Goi, the first author of the published paper. 

By printing the perceptrons directly on CMOS imaging chips, Goi said, it is possible to realise AI optical circuits, which not only outperform current optical methods, but show the potential for application in a wide range of fields from security check, medical diagnostics, automatic driving, satellite image processing, etc.

The AI-enabled sensor is even able to communicate in Morse messages:

Hynix Aims to Lead SPAD-based dToF Market

SK Hynix publishes an article "Next-Generation 3D Image Sensor Component- SPAD." Few quotes:

"Sony was able to dominate the I-ToF sensor field through its acquisition of Softkinetic Systems S.A., which had the original technologies. Similarly, suppose a key semiconductor company with state-of-the-art technologies and infrastructure, such as SK hynix can actively collaborate with local researchers—we can expect to lead the growing global market of D-ToF and LiDAR sensors.

In Korea, researchers from Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) are currently leading the research of essential SPAD for D-ToF sensors to obtain the original technologies and drive the development of the next-generation of 3D stacked BSI D-ToF sensors.

In fact, according to research by Markets and Markets regarding the ToF image sensor market in 2020, it is estimated that while I-ToF sensors will experience an average annual growth of 11% by 2025, D-ToF sensors will achieve 37.3% average annual growth—more than triple that of I-ToF sensors."

Hamamatsu Introduces Photon-Number-Resolving Camera

PRNewswire: Hamamatsu Photonics releases a new scientific camera called the ORCA-Quest qCMOS camera, with noise of 0.27 e- rms and a pixel count of 9.4MP.

The ORCA-Quest reduces this photoelectric noise to a level below the signals generated by photons. Hamamatsu believes that this makes the ORCA-Quest the world's first camera to achieve 2D photon-number-resolving measurement, meaning that it accurately measures the number of photons to create an image.

At the heart of the ORCA-Quest camera is a new CMOS 2D image sensor, designed and fabricated using the company's unique in-house technologies. This CMOS sensor combines incredibly low noise of 0.27 e- rms with pixel count of 4096 x 2304, and a high-speed readout. Its other features include aBSI structure, 4.6 µm x 4.6 µm pixel size, reduced crosstalk between pixels, and suppressed variations in the electrical characteristics of each pixel.

ORCA-Quest qCMOS product page shows performance data and also has a whitepaper about the new sensor:

iCHaus Presents 100ps Laser Source for ToF

iCHaus publishes a webinar "Taking Time of Flight (ToF) Measuring to a New Level with Ultra Short Laser Pulses" presenting a laser driver to produce 100ps laser pulses in gain switching mode together with gain switch mode basics explanations:

Optical Fingerprint Sensor Testing System

Under-display optical fingerprint sensor market seems to grow large enough to justify a commercial testing system. Taiwan-based Enlitech presents Optical In-Display Fingerprint Sensor Tester SG-MPX:

SPAD with 13% PDE @ 905nm

Imec, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Omnivision, and GPixel publish a joint paper "A Near-Infrared Enhanced Silicon Single-Photon Avalanche Diode with a Spherically Uniform Electric Field Peak" by Edward Van Sieleghem, Andreas Süss, Pierre Boulenc, Jiwon Lee, Gauri Karve, Koen De Munck, Celso Cavaco, and Chris Van Hoof.

"A near-infrared (NIR) enhanced silicon single-photon avalanche diode (SPAD) fabricated in a customized 0.13 μm CMOS technology is presented. The SPAD has a depleted absorption volume of approximately 15 μm x 15 μm x 18 μm. Electrons generated in the absorption region are efficiently transported by drift to a central active avalanche region with a diameter of 2 μm. At the operating voltage, the active region contains a spherically uniform field peak, enabling the multiplication of electrons originating from all corners of the device. The advantages of the SPAD architecture include high NIR photon detection efficiency (PDE), drift-based transport, low afterpulsing, and compatibility with an integrated CMOS readout. A front-side illuminated device is fabricated and characterized. The SPAD has a PDE of 13% at wavelength 905 nm, an afterpulsing probability < 0.1% for a dead time of 13 ns, and a median dark count rate (DCR) of 840 Hz at room temperature. The device shows promising performance for time-of-flight applications that benefit from uniform NIR-sensitive SPAD arrays."

Gigajot Unveils Commercially Available Quanta Image Sensors

PRNewswire: Gigajot announces its first QIS products, that the company calls the dawn of a new era in solid-state imaging. The new QIS products are capable of photon counting at room temperature while operating at full speed, and achieving high dynamic range – all in small pixel, high resolution formats.  With 5-10x read noise improvement over conventional small pixel image sensors, QIS enables imaging at ultra-low light levels not previously possible.

Gigajot's pioneering QIS products target high performance imaging applications such as scientific, medical, defense, industrial, and space.

The 16MP GJ01611 utilizes a 1.1um pixel to achieve room temperature 0.19e- read noise and less than 0.09 e-/s/pixel dark current, while the 4MP GJ00422 employs a 2.2um pixel and provides 0.27e- read noise with single-exposure dynamic range of 100 dB.

 Leveraging advanced stacked CMOS BSI sensor process, the sensors are capable of photon counting at room temperature without elaborate cooling systems – made possible by industry leading dark current and read noise. Gigajot's proprietary readout architecture enables photon counting cameras to operate at high-speed and low-power. Additionally, the single-exposure HDR mitigates the motion artifacts that result from conventional multi-exposure HDR techniques.

"The ability to do photon counting at room temperature is a game changer for our research efforts in Astrophysics and Quantum Information Science," said Don Figer, Director of Center for Detectors and the Future Photon Initiative in the College of Science, Rochester Institute of Technology. 

GJ00422 and GJ01611 evaluation and camera development are supported by Gigajot's Camera Development Kit (QIS CDK). Available now, the QIS CDK has a SuperSpeed USB 3.0 interface and user-friendly software, in a small form factor.