GIGAPYX sensor performance in space environments

TL;DR

This study evaluates the space radiation resilience of the GIGAPYX-4600 CMOS image sensor, demonstrating its robustness under proton and heavy ion irradiation, with promising implications for space applications.

Contribution

It provides the first comprehensive assessment of the radiation hardness of the GIGAPYX-4600 sensor, a scalable 46 MP CMOS device, under space-like irradiation conditions.

Findings

Dark current and noise degrade under proton irradiation but remain within high-performance CIS ranges.

The sensor is resistant to latch-up and blooming effects from heavy ions up to specified energies.

Performance metrics such as saturation charge and PRNU show manageable changes post-irradiation.

Abstract

We present the results of the GIGAPYX-4600 image sensor in space environment, more specifically under different types of irradiations (protons and heavy ions). The GIGAPYX-4600 is a state-of-the-art 46M pixel multi-purpose, backside illuminated CMOS image sensor. The sensor features high-speed (200 fps), low-noise (< 2e-rms), rolling shutter readout. It has been fabricated using 65 nm node CMOS technology, making use of capacitive deep trench isolation, thus exhibiting good MTF as well as excellent dark current characteristics. The GIGAPYX image sensor family is meant to be easily scalable thanks to a novel use of stitching technology. The assessed sensor features an impressive 46 Mpixels, but the sensor family is meant to be scaled up to 220 M pixels. The idea of this study was to investigate the radiation hardness of a commercially available off-the-shelf (COTS) image sensor that could be suitable for space-borne applications, such as earth observation or satellite vicinity surveillance. In the near future a radiation hard readout electronic for this sensor family will be made available off-the-shelf by Pyxalis. This presentation will overview the different sensor key performances evolutions after proton irradiation up to a total fluence of 2.3e11 p+/cm${}^2$ (62 MeV): dark current, dark current non-uniformity (DCNU), noise, non-linearity, saturation charge and photo-response non-uniformity (PRNU). As expected, degradations mostly occur on the dark current, DCNU and temporal noise. The orders of magnitude of the degradation are in the range of the already published high performance CIS technologies. Results obtained from heavy ions irradiations will demonstrate that the GIGAPYX is not only latch-up free at least up to 57 Mev.cm2/mg, but resistant to the blooming effects induced by a SET at pixel level thanks to its capacitive deep trench isolations. Various SEE effects have been studied, demonstrating encouraging results for such COTS device in order to fly, in particular in GEO orbit. All these radiations results will be used as inputs in designing space camera based on the GIGAPYX sensors, compatible with multiple-mission types.