March 19th News, domestic manufacturer OmniVision has recently released the OV50K40 sensor, the world's first smartphone image sensor using TheiaCe technology, achieving a dynamic range close to that of the human eye in a single exposure.
The OV50K40 has a native 50-megapixel resolution with a 1/1.3-inch large bottom and a pixel area of 1.2 microns. It supports pixel four-in-one output of 12.5 million pixels, providing stronger light sensitivity.
The frame rate supports 120fps and 60fps (HDR), achieving full 50 million pixel Bayer output, high-quality 8K video, and 2x crop zoom capability.
Quad-phase detection (QPD) capability enables 2x2 phase-detection auto focus (PDAF) across the sensor’s entire image array, achieving 100 percent coverage for ultrafast autofocus performance.
A major highlight of the sensor is its lateral overflow integration capacitor (LOFIC) technology, which is based on placing high-density capacitors next to each photodiode in the mobile imaging sensor to collect light electrons that may have otherwise been saturated and overflowed.
When the number of photoelectrons converted by the photodiode exceeds the original maximum capacity, the excess photoelectrons overflow into an adjacent capacitor instead of being saturated.
This allows the sensor to better retain highlight information in the captured scene, resulting in output images that more closely resemble real-world lighting conditions and achieve an ultra-high dynamic range.
High-quality DSLR cameras produce stunning and realistic images primarily due to their superior dynamic range, which allows them to capture a wide range of colors, light, and shadows as seen by the human eye. The introduction of the OV50K40 has brought similar capabilities to smartphones, allowing them to rival the image quality of DSLRs.
