Sharp Develops CCD Image Sensor With Minimum Pixel Size For Digital Cameras

Sharp Corp., Osaka, Japan, developed the "RJ24N3AAOPT," a new 2-million CCD image sensor with a pixel size of 2.75 square micrometers, reported AsiaBizTech News. It is for a 1/3.2-inch optical system (diagonal length of about 5.6mm). As a 2 million-pixel CCD image sensor, the smallest sensor commercially available is reportedly for a 1/2.7-inch optical system (diagonal length of 6.65mm), built, for instance, in Canon Inc.'s "IXY DIGITAL 300" digital camera. According to Sharp, use of the new CCD imgae sensor enables makers to reduce the volume of the whole optical system of a digital still camera by approximately 35 percent compared with that of a 1/2.7-inch CCD image sensor.

Sharp plans to start mass production of the new sensor in March 2002, according to the report.