Thursday, March 08, 2007

Toshiba High-DR Sensor Announced

PRNewsWire: Toshiba Corporation has developed Dynastron-WD wide dynamic range technology for CMOS image sensors used in mobile-handset applications such as camera cell phones. This new innovation can extend the dynamic range of a CMOS image sensor up to 96dB maximum, compared to the 60dB dynamic range of the current Toshiba technology.

To achieve the optimal dynamic range, Dynastron-WD technology incorporates four stages of operation: dual exposure operation on the photodiode, separate readout operation, linear-conversion synthesis operation and high-signal compression.

Toshiba's white paper reveals the new sensor is based on 4T pixels, meaning it's supposed to offer excellent low light sensitivity. This might be a killer for existing high-DR companies, like Pixim, SmalCamera-Cypress-Sensata and the likes. Even though they offer higher than 96db DR, they are using 3T pixel process for the most part, meaning high DC and DCNU and higher temporal noise.

Still, it remains to be seen how the new Toshiba technology translates into the market-ready products. So far, no such products have been announces, not even samples.

By the way, Pixim today announced completion of an additional $15M round of financing (EETimes).

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