CCD
A CCD or Charge-Coupled Device is an analog electronic device that can be used as the image sensor in place of film in an electronic camera or scanner. Many digital cameras use CCDs as their image sensor, although some use CMOS or other devices instead. The CCD was invented in 1969 at Bell Labs by Willard Boyle and George Smith. Whilst the CCD is sensitive to light - and so can be used as an image sensor, it has also been used as a memory device. Some early cameras (e.g. Minolta RD-175) used more than one CCD - with a colour-separation prism or filter directing different colours of light to the individual sensors.
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| 3.2 megapixel CCD device of a Canon A75 digital compact camera |
The resolution of the image sensor governs the resolution of the camera, although some cameras can produce increased pixel counts using interpolation software - particularly with multi-CCD sensors.
CCD makers
Many of the big camera makers or consumer electronics companies have an own production of CCDs, for example Sony and Fujifilm. Other companies are specialized on making camera sensors, among them
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