PHOTONIS offers a wide range of Intensified Digital Sensors (IDS).

IDS are the basis of many security and surveillance sensor systems as well as remote sensors for object security. Compared to conventional systems, IDS require less electronics to achieve better performance and they can be customised to match your specific requirements.

The small dimensions and rugged component structure allow system integrators to construct compact and high performance digital systems. Optional embedded camera system accommodate all the necessary functionality to facilitate a wide variety of signal output standards.

Add to this our Autogated power supply and you will extend the dynamic range of the system from low light-level conditions to broad daylight.

CMOS vs. CCD

Most intensified cameras use CCD sensors, with fiberoptic tapers glued directly to the chip surfaces. This provides more efficient coupling than lenses, if used for transferring an MCP output image to the sensor surface. CMOS image sensors (as compared to CCD) are usually "cameras-on-a-chip", with all analog circuitry hidden inside, requiring just single low-voltage power supply, accepting digital commands and generating digital output.

You usually pay a price for convenience - lower sensitivity and higher fixed-pattern noise - pixel-to-pixel variation of sensitivity and dark signal (pixel value when no light is applied).

CMOS sensors need a usefull amount of light to perform and our Image Intensifiers produce enough light for use with CMOS . "Enough" means that increasing sensor sensitivity will not produce additional information (because of the quantum nature of light detection on the MCP input) - similar to trying to increase contrast of a digital image when you already see brightness/color bands (steps) if the original image is too dim.

The limited dynamic range of CMOS digital outputs (usually 8-10 bits) perfectly matches (even slightly exceeds) that of the MCP. The fixed-pattern noise of these sensors is masked by that of superposition of patterns of micro-channels in MCP, fibers in its output (fiberoptic) window, fibers in the coupling taper and pixels in a sensor chip.

Note that fixed-pattern noise only looks nasty on the raw images; it is not a real (random) noise, and may be eliminated without any information loss by per-pixel calibration - a simple operation for a camera that has sufficient computational power and memory for storing an array of coefficients.

IDS offer the possibility of remote or shared observation - an essential feature in surveillance and defence applications, when the discretion and safety of the observer is paramount.

IDS also allow electronic video processing (computed colours, symbology...) and sensor fusion (e.g. thermal imagery and image intensification) and projection of all that aggregated data on a HUD-type of viewer.

The design of each element of an IDS (IIT, CCD or CMOS and video processing electronics) must be carefully tailored for each application.

Specifications of ICMOS

ICMOS applications are build to match your specific requirements. At PHOTONIS we have the expertise to bond virtually any Image Intensifier to any CMOS - however - before we do so we would like to discuss with you your exact requirements. This "build-to-match" will not only reduce the inclusion of needless components and unnecessary cost - but it will also ensure the optimum solution for your application.

Please contact your salesmanager for additional information.