Sony today announced the upcoming release of two new models of short-wavelength infrared (SWIR) image sensors for industrial equipment. The new sensors are capable of capturing images in the visible and invisible light spectrum in the short-wavelength infrared range and boast a compact size made possible by the industry’s smallest 1 5μm pixel size. Conventional SWIR image sensors generally have an analog output, the new Sony short-wavelength infrared (SWIR) image sensors support digital output to deliver the same performance as current industrial CMOS image sensors.
Although analog output sensors require a digital conversion circuit or other functionality for industrial equipment on the camera, these products already include this functionality, reducing the number of steps in camera development and making multifunction camera development easier. Sony’s new sensors employ the stacking technology using Cu-Cu connection that Sony has developed for years along with Sony’s original SWIR image sensor technology.
In Sony’s original SenSWIR technology, photodiodes are formed on an indium gallium arsenide (InGaAs) compound semiconductor layer and are connected via Cu-Cu connection with the silicon (Si) layer which forms the readout circuit — a design which enables high-sensitivity over a broad range of wavelengths. This breakthrough yields a SWIR image sensor that is compact yet capable of delivering seamless image capture over a broad range of wavelengths covering from the visible to invisible light spectrum in the short-wavelength infrared range (wavelength: 0.4μm to 1.7μm).
delivering high image quality and a more compact sensor size thanks to miniaturization, as well as high sensitivity imaging in a broad range of wavelengths covering both the visible and invisible spectrum. The new products also support digital output, matching the performance of current CMOS image sensors for industrial equipment.
The new products employ:
Employing these products enables sensing even in wavelengths not visible to the human eye, making possible the development of cameras and testing equipment for various applications and contributing to the development of diversifying industrial equipment.