Back-illuminated ultraviolet image sensor in silicon-on-sapphire

We present a back-illuminated 32 x 32 pixel SOI image sensor chip in 0.5-mum silicon-on-sapphire process capable of ultraviolet imaging. The imager performs "snap-shot" image acquisition and analog readout at a continuous rate of a thousand frames/s and consumes as little as 650 muW. Each pixel consists of a photodiode and a memory capacitor in 40 mum x 40 mum with a fill factor of 43%. The image sensor is suited for hyper-spectral imaging at high speeds.