Miniature ToF modules used in more than 150 different smartphones

STMicroelectronics has announced the shipment of its one billionth Time-of-Flight (ToF) module. These tiny modules contain a VCSEL and ST's Single Photon Avalanche Diode (SPAD) sensor technology (manufactured in ST's 300mm front-end wafer fab in Crolles, France).

"ST has pioneered and transitioned Time-of-Flight technology from its research labs to a fully industrialised family of market-leading products that are now being used in more than 150 different smartphone models and have just passed the 1 billion module milestone," said Eric Aussedat, general manager of ST's Imaging Subgroup.

"In continuing to invest, ST has extended the FlightSense roadmap for Time-of-Flight products from high-performance 1-dimensional ranging devices to multi-zone solutions and most recently adding high-resolution 3D depth sensing capabilities to enable innovative applications using advanced proximity sensing, human presence detection, and laser autofocus."

The VL6180, VL53L0, and VL53L1 families of products, among others, are in high-volume production for consumer, personal computer, and industrial markets. ST's Time-of-Flight devices have been designed into robotic vacuum cleaners, laptops, children's tablet computers (to promote eye safety), automated water faucets, consumer drones, robots, and projectors, among many others.

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