Toshiba announces new highly-sensitive CMOS image sensor with back-side illumination technology

SAN JOSE, USA: Toshiba America Electronic Components Inc. (TAEC), a committed leader that collaborates with technology companies to create breakthrough designs, today announced the launch of a new CMOS image sensor that offers the industry's smallest pixel size (1.12 micrometers) with enhanced sensitivity and improved imaging performance though the use of back-side illumination technology (BSI).

Thanks to their ability to conform to tight form factors and still capture high-definition images, Toshiba expects BSI CMOS image sensors to become a mainstream technology in a variety of portable digital devices, ranging from mobile phones and digital cameras to smartphones and tablets.

"As smartphones and other portable digital devices move to smaller form factors, image sensors must also shrink in size. This presents imaging subsystem designers with a challenge: how do you get smaller and smaller image sensors to support higher image resolutions when miniaturization can cause a fall off in performance?" said Andrew Burt, VP, Analog and Imaging Business Unit, System LSI Group, TAEC.

"Our BSI technology overcomes this problem by deploying the lens on the rear of the sensor, on its silicon substrate, not on the front, where wiring limits light absorption. This positioning boosts light sensitivity and absorption, and allows Toshiba to make finer quality image pixels in smaller-sized CMOS image sensors. This increased sensitivity also makes our BSI CMOS image sensors more suitable for video applications, such as video capture or video chat."

The first product in Toshiba's new line of BSI CMOS image sensors will feature a .25-inch optical format and 8 Megapixels, with each pixel measuring only 1.12 micrometers. The sensor will support video capture at up to 60 frames-per-second in both 1080p and 720p high-definition.

Sampling of the new sensor, part number T4K05, will begin at the end of this month with mass production scheduled to begin in late 2011. Samples are priced at $15 per unit.