High-performance a-Si:H TFT-driven linear image sensor and its application to a compact scanner

A high performance page width linear image sensor with a new multiplex structure called 'meander lines' has been developed. The sensor has an A3 page width (310 mm) with resolution of 400 dot per inch (DPI) and is operated at 4 MHz. The meander lines have been adopted to eliminate the crosstalk coupling and also to get small line capacitance closely related to high photoresponsivity. The sensor achieved a photoresponsivity of 20 V/lx(DOT)s and more than 64 gray scale reading capability. A compact image scanning unit was made of size 420 mm (W) X 130 mm (L) X 30 mm (H). It was tested and the reproduced image was good quality.