SPAD Sensors Come of Age

Edoardo Charbon and Silvano Donati

A unique light detector combines single-photon performance, multi-pixel image resolution and deep sub-nanosecond response.

 

figureDetail of a CMOS SPAD image sensor with polymer microlens technology.

In 1839, Alexandre-Edmond Becquerel set the stage for the development of photodetectors when he observed the photovoltaic effect. Then, Willoughby Smith furthered the field with his discovery of photoconductivity in selenium in 1873. Today, some 130 years later, light sensing continues to grow as a discipline, enriched of new ideas and achievements.

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