MEMS & Imaging Sensors Summit

Imec

7 september, 2:20 pm - 2:40 pm

Dr. Pawel Malinowski, Program Manager “Pixel Innovations", imec
Quantum Dot Imagers Bridging the SWIR Accessibility Gap

Information hiding in the short-wave infrared (SWIR) wavelength range has been typically only accessible to high-end applications such as industrial and scientific vision. The 4-digit price tag for cameras based on hybridized compound semiconductor chips was preventing wider adoption. With the advent of monolithic image sensors using quantum dots as the absorber layer, the sensor cost promises to drop to double or even single digit level, provided sufficient maturity and volumes. This can open wide adoption of SWIR imaging going beyond machine vision and into consumer and automotive systems. Applications include augmented vision (e.g. through fog or haze), eye-safe eye trackers (in AR/VR headsets), driver monitoring systems (including gaze detection through sunglasses) or material identification (e.g. for contamination or counterfeit detection). Monolithic integration also enables scaling both pixel size (currently already below 2 um) and resolution (above FullHD), which furthermore improves the image quality. In this talk, we will sketch the landscape of QD SWIR imagers and remaining challenges for their upscaling.

Event details

This summit provides the opportunity to gain insights into the newest MEMS & Imaging technologies and how they can impact future product developments and applications.  

Thanks to rapid advances in the development, manufacturing and integration of MEMS and image sensors, many promising new applications are on the horizon. With a focus on critical application, innovative companies talk about new opportunities and their vision of how miniaturized sensors can change the future.

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