sCMOS (scientific Complementary Metal–Oxide–Semiconductor) are a type of CMOS image sensor (CIS). These sensors are commonly used as components in specific observational scientific instruments, such as microscopes and telescopes. sCMOS image sensors offer extremely low noise, rapid frame rates, wide dynamic range, high quantum efficiency, high resolution, and a large field of view simultaneously in one image.
The sCMOS technology was launched in 2009 during the Laser World of Photonics fair in Munich. The companies Andor Technology, Fairchild Imaging and PCO Imaging developed the technology for image sensors as a joint venture.
Technical details
Prior to the introduction of the technology, scientists were limited to using either CCD or EMCCD cameras, both of which had their own set of technical limitations.8 While back-illuminated electron-multiplying CCD (EMCCD) cameras are optimal for purposes requiring the lowest noise and dark currents, sCMOS technology's higher pixel count and lower cost result in its use in a wide range of precision applications. sCMOS devices can capture data in a global-shutter “snapshot” mode over all the pixels or rectangular subsets of pixels, and can also operate in a rolling-shutter mode.9
The cameras are available with a monochrome sCMOS image sensors or with RGB sCMOS image sensors. With sCMOS, digital information for each frame is generated rapidly and with an improved low-light image quality. The latest sCMOS sensors provide low enough noise and do not benefit considerably from lower temperatures as it was with CCDs, allowing researchers to scan across a sample and capture high-quality images.1011
Some disadvantages at this time, (2023), with sCMOS cameras versus related technologies are:
- sCMOS sensors tend be more expensive than traditional CMOS sensors.
- sCMOS sensors have a limited resolution compared to other types of sensors like CCD.
In practice
The New York University School of Medicine uses sCMOS cameras for their research. They were used to study biological molecules and processes in real-time at nanometer scale.12 Such cameras were also in use in astronomy and microscopy.13
See also
Further reading
- Baker, R. Jacob (2010). CMOS: Circuit Design, Layout, and Simulation, Third Edition. Wiley-IEEE. p. 1174. ISBN 978-0-470-88132-3. http://CMOSedu.com
- Weste, Neil H. E.; Harris, David M. (2010). CMOS VLSI Design: A Circuits and Systems Perspective, Fourth Edition. Boston: Pearson/Addison-Wesley. p. 840. ISBN 978-0-321-54774-3. http://CMOSVLSI.com/
- Veendrick, H. J. M. (2017). Nanometer CMOS ICs, from Basics to ASICs. Springer. p. 770. ISBN 978-3-319-47595-0. http://springer.com/cn/book/9783319475950?referer=springer.com
- Mead, Carver A., and Conway, Lynn (1980). Introduction to VLSI systems. Boston: Addison-Wesley. ISBN 0-201-04358-0.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
References
"Photonics Products: Scientific CMOS Cameras: sCMOS cameras reach new levels of capability". Laser Focus World. 2018. https://www.laserfocusworld.com/articles/print/volume-54/issue-05/features/scientific-cmos-cameras-scmos-cameras-reach-new-levels-of-capability.html ↩
"A Comparison of EMCCD vs sCMOS Cameras". Oxford Instruments. Retrieved 2021-09-04. https://andor.oxinst.com/learning/view/article/comparing-scmos ↩
Walker, G. E. (2020-01-01). "Will sCMOS replace CCD's for Astronomy?". American Astronomical Society Meeting Abstracts #235. 235: 175.01. Bibcode:2020AAS...23517501W. http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2020AAS...23517501W ↩
"Photonics Products: Scientific CMOS Cameras: sCMOS cameras reach new levels of capability". Photonics Online. 2012. https://www.photonicsonline.com/doc/scientific-cmos-scmos-technology-an-overview-0001 ↩
Evaluation of sCMOS cameras for detection and localization of single Cy5 molecules, Optics Express, Saumya Saurabh, Suvrajit Maji, and Marcel P. Bruchez, 2012. https://www.osapublishing.org/oe/fulltext.cfm?uri=oe-20-7-7338&id=230396 ↩
sCMOS – Die eierlegende Wollmilchsau der Bildsensorik?, Wiley-VCH, Gerhard Holst, German, 2009 https://application.wiley-vch.de/berlin/journals/op/09-03/OP0903_S37-S39.pdf ↩
"Photonics Products: Scientific CMOS Cameras: sCMOS cameras reach new levels of capability". Photonics Online. 2012. https://www.photonicsonline.com/doc/scientific-cmos-scmos-technology-an-overview-0001 ↩
sCMOS Cameras Take the Scientific Imaging Stage, May 7, 2018. Retrieved on October 8, 2018 https://www.novuslight.com/scmos-cameras-take-the-scientific-imaging-stage_N8059.html ↩
"Photonics Products: Scientific CMOS Cameras: sCMOS cameras reach new levels of capability". Laser Focus World. 2018. https://www.laserfocusworld.com/articles/print/volume-54/issue-05/features/scientific-cmos-cameras-scmos-cameras-reach-new-levels-of-capability.html ↩
"How to Choose Between a CCD and sCMOS Scientific-Grade Camera". April 29, 2015. Retrieved 2025-03-19. https://www.americanlaboratory.com/914-Application-Notes/173576-How-to-Choose-Between-a-CCD-and-sCMOS-Scientific-Grade-Camera/ ↩
"X-Ray cameras with 11 and 16 Mpix". Retrieved 2025-03-19. https://www.ximea.com/support/projects/standard-cameras/wiki/FAQ-X-RAY ↩
"Photonics Products: Scientific CMOS Cameras: sCMOS cameras reach new levels of capability". Laser Focus World. 2018. https://www.laserfocusworld.com/articles/print/volume-54/issue-05/features/scientific-cmos-cameras-scmos-cameras-reach-new-levels-of-capability.html ↩
"StackPath". www.laserfocusworld.com. 2 May 2018. Retrieved 2020-06-10. https://www.laserfocusworld.com/detectors-imaging/article/16555375/photonics-products-scientific-cmos-cameras-scmos-cameras-reach-new-levels-of-capability ↩