Image sensor slims down for smartphones with full-screen displays
High resolution images can be achieved in the industry’s smallest form factor, claims Samsung, which has introduced the 0.8 micron pixel Isocell image sensor.
The slim 20Mpixel Isocell Slim 3T2 image sensor brings high resolution images with a form factor that measures approximately 5.1mm diagonally.
The compact image sensor delivers 20-megapixel resolution for both front and back cameras in smartphones. This provides clarity and detail to the image and also offers high colour fidelity via Samsung’s Isocell Plus technology that enables sensors to capture and absorb more light information for accurate colour reproduction even with sub-micrometer-sized pixels.
In order to support smartphones with the latest display features such as the ‘hole-in display’ or ‘notch design,’ front-facing image sensors need to be a minimal size while being able to capture high-quality images. The Isocell Slim 3T2 fits into a tiny module making more space for the smartphone’s display. In addition, Samsung’s Tetracell technology, which merges four pixels to work as one, lets the 3T2 take brighter and sharper pictures in low-light settings as the colour filter array’s light sensitivity increases to that of a 1.6micro pixel image sensor at 5Mpixel resolution.
When applied in rear-facing multi-camera settings for telephoto use, the Isocell 3T2 adopts an RGB colour filter array instead of Tetracell technology. The size of the image sensor also reduces the height of the tele-camera module by around seven per cent when compared to Samsung’s 1/3-inch 20Mp image sensor. Compared to a 13Mpixel sensor with the same module height, the 20Mp 3T2 retains 60 per cent higher effective resolution at 10x digital zoom.
