Eastman Kodak Company has announced the latest additions to its line of Kodak Blue Plus Color CCDs, the KAF-5100CE and the KAF-16801CE. These image sensors bolster the company's position as one of the leading suppliers of large-format, full-frame CCDs for high-performance digital imaging applications.

The KAF-5100CE is a 5.1 million pixel CCD image sensor based on a 6.8 µm pixel architecture. The sensor has a 4/3-inch optical format, providing a light capturing surface that is six times larger than many of the half-inch CCDs found in today's consumer and advanced-amateur digital cameras, the company said.

"Kodak's ability to deliver large silicon sensors is a tremendous advantage given the current trends in the digital camera marketplace," said Chris McNiffe, vice president, sales & marketing, Image Sensor Solutions division.

"Today, CCD manufacturers increase the resolution of their sensors by continually shrinking the size of each pixel which ultimately limits dynamic range and image quality. Kodak's expertise in delivering high quality, large format sensors is a key advantage for us in the digital camera marketplace as performance and image quality, not simply pixel count, become the primary differentiating factor."

The KAF-16801 is designed for the studio and high-end digital camera marketplace. Its 16.6 million (4080 x 4080) pixel array makes for excellent CCD resolution, the company said. The device incorporates a 9-µm pixel architecture and is packaged in a 34-pin DIP ceramic package. Both devices use the company's Blue Plus Color process, which incorporate Kodak's on-chip color filter arrays.