Emberion announced (link) earlier its capability to produce low-cost SWIR sensors using its proprietary and patented wafer level packaging (WLP) technology and is now ready to share the results of the significant steps taken recently. These developments enable an order of magnitude cost-reduction of SWIR sensors and eventually enable SWIR sensor deployment in high volume businesses.
SWIR sensors and cameras based on InGaAs have historically been expensive systems. Quantum dot based sensors and cameras have created a pathway towards affordable sensors with unique benefits including scale up and reducing manufacturing costs. Packaging is an important area of development where metal and ceramic packaging can add significant BOM cost thus increasing the overall system costs. To address this, Emberion has developed a solution for wafer level packaged (WLP) sensors. This is an essential technology to deploy SWIR sensors in cost-sensitive, high-volume markets, such as automotive, consumer and civil defence and protection markets.
Emberion has taken significant steps and is now showcasing fully functional proof-of-concept implementations with its wafer level packaged sensor and a camera that was built around it as a prototype. This wafer level packaged sensor creates an ideal scenario for SWIR cameras where the price of these sensors can ultimately be driven down to lower three-digit range eventually taking the price of the camera down further. Longer term, Emberion will leverage WLP as a key enabler for a sensor only solution allowing users to integrate it into high volumes applications.
The following images visualize the difference in footprint between the conventional metal package and future WLP SWIR sensors.
Images from left: metal package, WLP’s packaged, individual WLP dies.
Emberion is open to partnering for high volume solutions for various applications; please contact us for further details and discussion.
Emberion is exhibiting at SPIE Photonics West (link) end of January. Please meet us at our booth 4229 at Photonics Finland Pavilion to hear more what Emberion’s current & future SWIR products can offer to your imaging and detection solutions. Emberion will also have the first samples of wafer-level-packaged sensors on show at Photonics West.