Canon Presents World's Largest CMOS Sensor

After successfully managing to pack 120 Megapixels into a sensor measuring 20 x 29 mm, Canon has now pushed the limits of CMOS technology even further with a huge 202 x 205 mm 120-Megapixel sensor! This outsized sensor probably won't be cropping up in a digital camera anytime soon, but it's a great way for Canon to prove its technical ability.

The first sensor was announced last week, when Canon presented this 120-Megapixel, APS-H-format chip (APS-H is the format used in the EOS-1D range and EOS-1Ds cameras with 24 x 36 mm sensors). It measures 20.2 x 29.2 mm and takes pictures in a resolution of 13,280 x 9,184 pixels. That means that, according to our calculations, each pixel would be 2.2 µm across, which is around about the same size as in an expert compact camera like the Canon G11 or Panasonic LX3.

The highest-resolution sensor currently on the market is 60 Megapixels. For its 60 MP, the Phase One P65+ sensor measures 40 x 54 mm and the digital back alone (without the SLR body or lens) sells for around $40,000.


Canon's second sensor-based announcement came yesterday, when the brand unveiled a 202 x 205 mm model. With a surface area of 400 cm², this mega-sensor is 48 times bigger than 'full frame' sensors measuring 24 x 36 mm, as found in Canon's EOS-1Ds professional SLR range.

The second announcement is almost certainly more impressive than the first, as Canon has successfully managed to make a functioning sensor out of silicon wafer with a 30 cm diameter—and with no errors in circuit printing!

Making a sensor this big with no printing errors in the sensor circuitry is no mean feat. Problems generally crop up due to irregularities in the silicon, the limitations of the printing equipment and many other factors. This is ultimately why bigger sensors are more expensive to produce, as with smaller sensors, errors in circuit printing will only cost around 6 x 8 mm of silicon, whereas for a full-frame SLR sensor, 24 x 36 mm of silicon is lost if something goes wrong.

We daren't even imagine how much it cost to manufacture a sensor that's 20 cm². In fact, Canon probably got though several (several dozen even) silicon wafers before its engineers actually managed to make a fully functioning version!

The sensor's resolution isn't given, but we'd image it's quite low for the sensor's size. In fact, Canon is mainly talking up its sensitivity in low light, as this sensor can take photos with 1/100th of the light required by an EOS-1Ds Mk III or an EOS 5D Mk II. This makes for a gain of 5.5 EV steps. The sensor could therefore film at 60 frames per second in light of just 0.3 lux. In comparison, the low-light test in our digital camera face-off is carried out at 3 lux, and the cameras that can handle the highest sensitivity settings still take around a quarter of a second to take a shot—that's fifteen time slower than with this beast.

So will we see this sensor in a camera one day? Probably not. First of all because no lens is able to take a picture big enough (apart from certain large-format systems). Second, because the cost of production would make it too expensive even for professionals.

Nevertheless, this demonstration of technological prowess allows Canon to position itself in relation to other manufacturers, as well as to identify its limits and to investigate new ways of improving its existing cameras. From a marketing perspective, it also helps remind consumers that Canon is at the cutting-edge of technology. In fact, Canon was the first manufacturer to truly believe in the CMOS sensor and to use it in an SLR (the EOS D30, released ten years ago) at a time when it was considered a low-cost alternative to the CCD and was deemed barely good enough for webcams.



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