A 12-Mpixel Automotive Image Sensor with 137-dB Single-Exposure Dynamic Range and 0.55-Electron Read Noise by Oversampling-Based Noise Reduction

A 12-Mpixel CMOS image sensor is presented, with a single-exposure dynamic range of 137 dB and read noise of <tex xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">$0.55 \mathrm{e}^{-}$</tex> at <tex xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">$\text{Tj} 85^{\circ} \mathrm{C}$</tex> for automotive applications. A sub-pixel structure is adopted with a high-density in-pixel capacitor for dynamic range expansion. Optimal oversampling and high analog gain with the proposed readout scheme are employed, to reduce read noise. ADC bit resolutions of the readout modes are reconfigured, to support noise reduction in a given readout time. The chip consumes only 676 mW at 30 -fps full readout.