Difference between revisions of "CMOS"

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'''CMOS''' (Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor) is a technology for making electronic devices, including processor chips and camera sensors. Currently (2008) only a few cameras use CMOS sensors, compared to the vast number using [[CCD]] devices.
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'''CMOS''' (Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor) is a technology used in fabricating integrated circuit chips<ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cmos CMOS] article at [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page Wikipedia]</ref>. But in the context of photography, it is one of the two alternative technologies used in digital camera [[sensor|image sensors]]; the other being [[CCD]]s.
  
As a logic technology, it is fairly low in power consumption, but can be relatively slow.
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Early digital cameras tended to use CCD sensors, as this was the more mature technology. The evolution of CMOS sensors had a steeper learning curve, and originally their use was confined to lower-cost products where image quality was not an overriding concern. However [[Canon]] and [[Sony]] refined CMOS sensors through several generations; today (2011) when comparing sensors of equal size, CMOS sensors generally exceed CCDs in image quality measures<ref>[http://www.dxomark.com/index.php/en/Camera-Sensor/Sensor-rankings DxO Mark Sensor Rankings] at [http://www.dxomark.com/index.php DxO Mark]</ref>.
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Typically a CMOS design uses active circuitry placed on directly on the chip itself, which can speed image readout and help with noise reduction. The added circuit complexity does increase the up-front costs to the chip developer; thus we see sensor manufacturer [[Sony]] trying to recoup some of those costs by selling sensor chips to its nominal competitors in the camera market: Pentax, Nikon, Leica, etc.
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As HD video has increasingly been seen as a must-have bullet point in digital camera sales, the speed advantage of CMOS chips has helped make them the default choice in new camera designs.
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==Notes==
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<references/>
  
 
[[Category: Camera parts]]
 
[[Category: Camera parts]]
 
[[Category: Digital]]
 
[[Category: Digital]]

Revision as of 04:01, 16 July 2017

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CMOS (Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor) is a technology used in fabricating integrated circuit chips[1]. But in the context of photography, it is one of the two alternative technologies used in digital camera image sensors; the other being CCDs.

Early digital cameras tended to use CCD sensors, as this was the more mature technology. The evolution of CMOS sensors had a steeper learning curve, and originally their use was confined to lower-cost products where image quality was not an overriding concern. However Canon and Sony refined CMOS sensors through several generations; today (2011) when comparing sensors of equal size, CMOS sensors generally exceed CCDs in image quality measures[2].

Typically a CMOS design uses active circuitry placed on directly on the chip itself, which can speed image readout and help with noise reduction. The added circuit complexity does increase the up-front costs to the chip developer; thus we see sensor manufacturer Sony trying to recoup some of those costs by selling sensor chips to its nominal competitors in the camera market: Pentax, Nikon, Leica, etc.

As HD video has increasingly been seen as a must-have bullet point in digital camera sales, the speed advantage of CMOS chips has helped make them the default choice in new camera designs.

Notes