MARCH 3--Micron Technology Inc. (Boise, ID; www.micron.com) has introduced its 1.3-Mpixel (MI-1300) low-power CMOS progressive-scan active pixel image sensors for digital still cameras, digital video cameras, and PC cameras. Its 1.3-Mpixel CMOS image sensors take advantage of the combination of the company's advanced DRAM CMOS process technology and sensor-design expertise to achieve charged-coupled-device (CCD) level image quality while taking advantage of the benefits of CMOS sensor technology.
The output of the MI-1300 is 30-frames/s progressive scan, exceeding frame rates available for CCD sensors designed for digital still camera applications. It achieves a dark current of 20 electrons/s. The sensor maintains a low temporal noise of less than 10 electrons, allowing images to be captured in lower light levels.The sensor's performance on both of these parameters, as well as others, is similar to CCD levels and exceeds the performance of most competing CMOS sensors. Proprietary process techniques have also been applied to achieve a high degree of color separation that results in richer colors.
The MI-1300 has on-chip timing and control, analog-to-digital conversion, programmable gain and exposure control, auto black-level calibration, and snap-shot and viewfinder modes. It is capable of both continuous video and single-frame capture with sync input and strobe output, as well as windowing and horizontal and vertical blanking control. The MI-1300 is the first in a family of megapixel products and will be followed by higher-resolution megapixel devices later this year.
