Reviews Online

Jiaju Ma et al. of Gigajot Technology, Inc. have published a new article titled "Ultra‑high‑resolution quanta image sensor with reliable photon‑number‑resolving and high dynamic range capabilities" in Nature Scientific Reports. Abstract: Superior low‑light and high dynamic range (HDR) imaging performance with ultra‑high pixel resolution are widely sought after in the imaging world. The quanta image sensor (QIS) concept was proposed in 2005 as the next paradigm in solid‑state image sensors after charge coupled devices (CCD)and complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) active pixel sensors. This next‑generation image sensor would contain hundreds of millions to billions of small pixels with photon‑number‑resolving and HDR capabilities, providing superior imaging performance over CCD and conventional CMOS sensors. In this article, we present a 163 megapixel QIS that enables both reliable photon‑number‑resolving and high dynamic range imaging in a single device. Th

From phys.org a news article about a recent paper that casts doubt on the traditional understanding of how human color perception works: "Math error: A new study overturns 100-year-old understanding of color perception": A new study corrects an important error in the 3D mathematical space developed by the Nobel Prize-winning physicist Erwin Schrödinger and others, and used by scientists and industry for more than 100 years to describe how your eye distinguishes one color from another. The research has the potential to boost scientific data visualizations, improve TVs and recalibrate the textile and paint industries. The full paper appears in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences vol. 119 no. 18 (2022). It is titled "The non-Riemannian nature of perceptual color space" authored by Dr. Roxana Bujack and colleagues at Los Alamos National Lab. The scientific community generally agrees on the theory, introduced by Riemann and furthered by Helmholtz and S

The June 2022 issue of IEEE Trans. Electron. Devices has an invited paper titled Direct Time-of-Flight Single-Photon Imaging by Istvan Gyongy et al. from University of Edinburgh and STMicroelectronics.  This is a comprehensive tutorial-style article on single-photon 3D imaging which includes a description of the image formation model starting from first principles and practical system design considerations such as photon budget and power requirements. Abstract: This article provides a tutorial introduction to the direct Time-of-Flight (dToF) signal chain and typical artifacts introduced due to detector and processing electronic limitations. We outline the memory requirements of embedded histograms related to desired precision and detectability, which are often the limiting factor in the array resolution. A survey of integrated CMOS dToF arrays is provided highlighting future prospects to further scaling through process optimization or smart embedded processing. Full paper:  https://doi

In IEEE Trans. Electr. Dev. June 2022 issue, in a paper titled "A Review of 3-Dimensional Wafer Level Stacked Backside Illuminated CMOS Image Sensor Process Technologies," Wuu et al. write: Over the past 10 years, 3-dimensional (3-D) wafer-level stacked backside Illuminated (BSI) CMOS image sensors (CISs) have undergone rapid progress in development and performance and are now in mass production. This review paper covers the key processes and technology components of 3-D integrated BSI devices, as well as results from early devices fabricated and tested in 2007 and 2008. This article is divided into three main sections. Section II covers wafer-level bonding technology. Section III covers the key wafer fabrication process modules for BSI 3-D waferlevel stacking. Section IV presents the device results. This paper has quite a long list of acronyms. Here is a quick reference: BDTI = backside deep trench isolation BSI = backside illumination BEOL = back end of line HB = hybrid bon

A team from MIT Media Lab has posted a new arXiv preprint titled "Physics vs. Learned Priors: Rethinking Camera and Algorithm Design for Task-Specific Imaging". Abstract : Cameras were originally designed using physics-based heuristics to capture aesthetic images. In recent years, there has been a transformation in camera design from being purely physics-driven to increasingly data-driven and task-specific. In this paper, we present a framework to understand the building blocks of this nascent field of end-to-end design of camera hardware and algorithms. As part of this framework, we show how methods that exploit both physics and data have become prevalent in imaging and computer vision, underscoring a key trend that will continue to dominate the future of task-specific camera design. Finally, we share current barriers to progress in end-to-end design, and hypothesize how these barriers can be overcome. Preprint:  https://arxiv.org/pdf/2204.09871.pdf