Advances on CMOS image sensors

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to offer an introduction to the technological advances of the complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor (CMOS) image sensors along the past decades. The authors review some of those technological advances and examine potential disruptive growth directions for CMOS image sensors and proposed ways to achieve them. Design/methodology/approach Those advances include breakthroughs on image quality such as resolution, capture speed, light sensitivity and color detection and advances on the computational imaging. Findings The current trend is to push the innovation efforts even further, as the market requires even higher resolution, higher speed, lower power consumption and, mainly, lower cost sensors. Although CMOS image sensors are currently used in several different applications from consumer to defense to medical diagnosis, product differentiation is becoming both a requirement and a difficult goal for any image sensor manufacturer. The unique properties of CMOS process allow the integration of several signal processing techniques and are driving the impressive advancement of the computational imaging. Originality/value The authors offer a very comprehensive review of methods, techniques, designs and fabrication of CMOS image sensors that have impacted or will impact the images sensor applications and markets.