Sony announced Wednesday that it to invest 40 billion yen into its Semiconductor Kyushu Corporation’s Kumamoto Technology Centre in a bid to increase production for its “Exmor” and “Exmor R” CMOS image sensors.
A CMOS chip is pixel sensor, which is used in digital cameras and is made using a semiconductor process. An extra circuitry next to each photo sensor converts the light energy to a voltage. It’s used in cameras such as Nikon’s, Canon’s and of course Sony’s offerings.
The new investment is higher than the original figure Sony put aside for the second half of 2010. It was however included in the company’s capital expediture, which it released at the end of June.
With the investment announced, Kumamoto TEC’s CMOS image sensor production capacity will be further increased, and Sony will strengthen its ability to meet the expected market demand for “Exmor R” used in smartphones as well as a wide range of digital imaging products for consumer and professional use, including compact Digital Still Cameras. In addition, Sony will increase production capacity for mainly large sized “Exmor” used in Digital Single Lens Reflex cameras.