On the basis of a competitive tender the French National Space Agency - CNES - has selected the consortium of CMOSIS and Thales Alenia Space to develop the next generation Time Delay and Integrate (TDI) sensor in standard CMOS image sensor technology.
TDI sensors are used in space for pushbroom mode Earth observation from Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites. Other applications include web inspection, dental panoramic X-ray imaging and flat bed scanners.
This novel image sensor will have a pixel size of 13 um and up to 50 TDI stages. The sensor targets CCD performance in terms of quantum efficiency, dynamic MTF and read noise. The CMOSIS design team, under guidance of Gerald Lepage, has ample experience in the development of TDI CMOS image sensors. This project further strengthens CMOSIS position in CMOS image sensor for space applications.
Reference: "CMOS long linear array for space application", G.Lepage, D.Dantes, W.Diels, Electronic Imaging 2006, vol. 6068