Chipworks

We recently took a look inside the Sony Ericsson Cyber-shot S006, with the eagerly anticipated 16 Mp image sensor, as well as some other interesting silicon found inside. This phone features a 1 GHz Snapdragon processor, Wi-Fi connectivity, GPS navigation, Bluetooth connectivity, and mobile wallet functions.  And with Valentine’s Day right around the corner, we found the pink exterior of this Japanese phone an appropriate shade.

The first thing we wanted to look at was, of course, the Cybershot’s much ballyhooed 16 MP CMOS image sensor. Sony has the distinction of being first to market with a commercial back illuminated CMOS image sensor, when it launched its HDR-XR520V camcorder in early 2009. The discovery is that now, two years later, Sony is again first to market – this time with a next generation 1.1 µm class pixel. Sony announced the IMX081PQ Exmor-R CMOS image sensor and IU081F camera module in October 2010. Featuring 1.12 µm pixels, the camera modules are claimed to be the smallest and thinnest modules of this resolution for mobile phones. These devices mark Sony’s first deployment of Exmor-R (back illuminated) sensors in mobile applications, and are part of Sony’s strategy to aggressively pursue design wins in high-end mobile phones. Shortly after the sensor announcement in October 2010, Sony Ericsson announced its 16 Mp Cyber-shot – arguably a camera with mobile phone features.

The 10.5 mm x 10.5 mm x 7.9 mm module features a chip-on-board (COB) mounted image sensor, an autofocus mechanism, and a printed wiring board (PWB) with embedded components – something which Sony has been a bit of a laggard on until now. The die itself is clearly a Sony BSI part, although we’ve noticed a recent trend from Sony CMOS image sensors, which is the discontinuation of die identification markings.  The IMX081PQ uses Bayer patterned color filters and microlenses on a 1.1 µm pitch.

The Sony Cyber-shot contains many silicon devices worth noting, including:

• A Qualcomm QSD8650 microprocessor, with package markings Qualcomm logo/QSD8650/B3H504.0/H204000C
• Two Qualcomm transceivers, the first with package markings Qualcomm logo/RTR6500/B2N887.1/A2045002, and the second with package markings Qualcomm logo/RTR6280/A4C099.1/F3045003
• A Ricoh power management IC with package markings RICOH/5T7710/048M18.
• A Texas Instruments power management IC with package markings TPS/65023/TI09J/PFDC 04. A bit of diligent research indicates that this part uses copper wire bonding within instead of the usual gold wires
• Cypress Cy8CTMA300 touch screen controller – notably also found in recent teardowns of the Nook and HTC Surround 7