The Quantum Efficiency (QE) of an imager is an important parameter because it has a significant impact on the sensitivity of a camera at a particular wavelength of interest. However, one should not use it as the sole determinant in camera selection: it should be considered in the full context of the application.
Other knowledge base articles provide insight into the relevant factors, such as pixel size, read noise and dark-shot-noise. When selecting a camera it is important to consider how these parameters determine the image quality that one can expect for different camera exposure settings under low-light and bright-light conditions.
The following is an interactive plot of the QE curves for cameras based on sCMOS imagers. They are shown on one rather crowded graph so that it is possible to make comparisons. The following interactive features of this graph can be helpful:
- Use your mouse to hover over the legend of a particular camera to see it highlighted in the graph below.
- Click on the legend of a camera to turn on or off its plot.
- Use your mouse to read QE data for all displayed imagers at the wavelengths of interest.
- Right-click and drag to zoom-in along the X-axis to expand the view for a desired range of wavelength.
- To pan left or right within a zoomed-in view, hold down the Shift key and use your mouse.
- To revert from the zoomed-in view to the normal view, click on the “Reset zoom” button that is displayed at the top-RHS of the graph.
QE Curves
These graphs are an estimate of the spectral response of commercially available cameras that are based on sCMOS imagers. This information is provided for reference purposes only and should not be used as a guarantee of performance.
** Peak QE is shown for monochrome versions of each camera series. Max frame rate is displayed as max frame rate at full resolution.
