Researches at the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration have developed the worlds smallest video camera, measuring 1 x 1 x 1 millimeters, around the same size as a coarsely ground grain of salt.
The tiny camera has been designed and created to be fitted to the end of endoscopes, long thin fiber optic cables. Digital video cameras consist of three components a lens, a sensor, and electrical contacts that relay the data from the sensor.
Up to 28,000 sensors are cut out from a silicon disc known as a wafer, after which each one must be individually wired up with contacts and mounted to a lens. In the new Fraunhofer’s system, contacts are added to one side of the sensor wafer while it’s still all in one piece, reducing production cost and providing the ability to create tiny and more self-contained cameras.
More details on the project and research can be read on the Fraunhofer IZM website
Filed Under: Camera News, Technology News