Polarization is one of the three fundamental properties of light, along with color and intensity, yet most vertebrate species, including humans, are blind with respect to this light modality. In contrast, many invertebrates, including insects, spiders, cephalopods, and stomatopods, have evolved to detect polarization information with high-dynamic-range photosensitive cells and utilize this information in visually guided behavior. In this paper, we present a high-dynamic-range polarization imaging sensor inspired by the visual system of the mantis shrimp. Our bioinspired imager achieves 140 dB dynamic range and 61 dB maximum signal-to-noise ratio across $384\times 288$ pixels equipped with logarithmic photodiodes. Contrary to state-of-the-art active pixel sensors, where photodiodes in individual pixels operate in reverse bias mode and yield up to $\sim 60\mathrm{dB}$ dynamic range, our pixel has a logarithmic response by operating individual photodiodes in forward bias mode. This novel pixel circuitry is monolithically integrated with pixelated polarization filters composed of 250-nm-tall × 75-nm-wide aluminum nanowires to enable snapshot polarization imaging at 30 frames per second. This sensor can enable many automotive and remote sensing applications, where high-dynamic-range imaging augmented with polarization information can provide critical information during hazy or rainy conditions.

中文翻译：

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具有高动态范围的受生物启发的偏振成像仪

偏振是光的三个基本特性之一，以及颜色和强度，但是大多数脊椎动物（包括人类）对这种光模态视而不见。相反，许多无脊椎动物，包括昆虫，蜘蛛，头足类动物和脚足类动物，已经进化为利用高动态范围光敏细胞检测极化信息，并在视觉引导的行为中利用该信息。在本文中，我们提出了一种受螳螂虾视觉系统启发的高动态范围偏振成像传感器。我们的受生物启发的成像仪可在整个过程中实现140 dB的动态范围和61 dB的最大信噪比$384\times 288$像素配备了对数光电二极管。与最先进的有源像素传感器相反，在有源像素传感器中，单个像素中的光电二极管以反向偏置模式工作，并产生高达$〜60\mathrm{D\; b}$在动态范围内，通过在正向偏置模式下操作单个光电二极管，我们的像素具有对数响应。这种新颖的像素电路与由250纳米高×75纳米宽的铝纳米线组成的像素化偏振滤光片单片集成，可实现每秒30帧的快照偏振成像。该传感器可以实现许多汽车和遥感应用，其中在偏振或雨天条件下，增强了偏振信息的高动态范围成像可以提供关键信息。