The U.S. image sensors market was worth USD 2.0 billion in 2011 and is forecasted to reach USD 3.7 billion in 2017 at a CAGR of 11.1 percent from 2011 to 2017, according to a new market report published by Transparency Market Research “Image Sensors Market – The U.S. Industry Analysis Market Share, Trends and Forecast, 2011 – 2017.” The linear image sensors segment accounted for the largest share – i.e. 84.2 percent – of the U.S. image sensors market at USD 1.7 billion in 2011.
The X-ray image sensors market segment will have the fastest revenue growth at a CAGR of 18.8 percent during 2011 – 2017. The U.S. CMOS image sensor shipment reached 464.0 million units in 2011 registering a growth of 27.6 percent over 2010.
Image sensors are broadly categorized under CCD image sensors (area image sensor), linear image sensors and X-ray image sensors. Linear image sensors are further segmented into CMOS image sensors, NMOS image sensors and InGaAs image sensors. The linear image sensors command the largest share of shipment and revenue, largely due to CMOS image sensors, which accounts for more than 90 percent of the linear image sensor market.
Growing technological advancement and faster adoption of new generation of mobile technology has spurred the demand for high resolution imaging technology. With nationwide mobile penetration inching towards 100 percent, mobile phone manufacturers are introducing a new array of imaging-enabled products. Current differentiators for imaging in mobile technology are low cost, low power, high performance and small size. Increasing integration and low power operation has opened new application segments for image sensors.
CMOS (complementary metal-oxide semiconductor) image sensors facilitate large scale integration and can enable a single chip to accommodate all camera functions, which eliminates the need for additional support packaging and assembly; thus lowering cost. Market players are progressively providing higher levels of integration by incorporating DSPs (digital signal processing), as well as ISPs (integrated signal processing). Other ground-breaking features such as multiple color filters that allow JPEG images conversion on the sensor are also supporting the market growth.