On December 17, 2014, SVCam Products announced a significant advancement in sensor technology with the introduction of Sony’s EXview HAD II™ sensors. These innovative devices boast several key improvements, including higher saturation signal levels, increased output, reduced smear and noise, and an exceptional minimum sensitivity rated at 1000 mV/µm² (Conditions: [email protected]/BW@F8 in 1 s accumulation equivalent). Our internal evaluations fully support Sony’s claims regarding the enhanced performance of these CCD sensors.

Key Improvements

Sony has achieved remarkable progress in several areas:

  1. Larger Light-Sensitive Semiconductor Area
    In single-chip color detection systems, light passing through a filter mosaic typically reduces sensitivity by one f-stop. Sony has optimized this design to minimize such losses, effectively increasing the sensor’s light-sensitive area.

  2. Increased Aperture Ratio
    By expanding the semiconductor material exposed to light, Sony improved the aperture ratio, enhancing light-collection efficiency. This change also reduced reliance on micro-lenses and eliminated concerns about photon spillover affecting shift registers.

  3. Optimized Color Mosaic Filter
    The reduction in sensitivity caused by color filter mosaics is now minimized through further refinement. This ensures better light transmission while maintaining accurate color capture.

  4. Shorter On-Chip Optical Path
    Sony reduced the thickness of the oxide layer beneath the protective coating, effectively shortening the optical path on the chip and boosting photon collection efficiency.

  5. Enhanced On-Chip Lenses
    With a redesigned sensor architecture, the micro-lenses have been optimized to focus incoming light more precisely onto the sensitive areas, improving overall image quality.

Applications and Impact

These sensors are particularly well-suited for capturing scenes with high dynamic range or wide intensity variations. Additionally, their improved Near-Infrared (NIR) sensitivity opens up new possibilities in low-light imaging and other specialized applications.

Sony’s EXview HAD II™ sensors represent a breakthrough in sensor technology, offering exceptional performance across various applications. They are already integrated into SVCam models such as the ECO674, ECO695, ECO815, ECO834 (and others in dual and quad tap configurations).

Last Updated: 2025-09-05 04:01:53