US technology company Rambus has unveiled ‘Binary Pixel’ sensor technology, promising greatly expanded dynamic range for the small sensors used in devices such as smartphones. Current image sensors are unable to record light above a specific saturation point, which results in clipped highlights. Binary Pixel technology gets around this by recording when a pixel has received a certain amount of light, then resetting it and in effect restarting the exposure. The result is significantly expanded dynamic range from a single-shot exposure. The company has demonstrated the technology using a low resolution sensor, and says it can easily be incorporated into CMOS sensors using current manufacturing methods.
News: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)