Largest CCD sensor at 22MB?

[BJL]

Unfortunately I have heard that it only comes in kit form, including a satellite or U-2 aircraft "at no additional cost".

[BJL]

If you want some reasons not to envy this sensor too much, I notice that it is "technically inferior" to the one in the Kodak DCS Pro Back 645 in several ways: (a) rather low quantum efficiency as monochrome sensors go (no microlenses?), so worse low light sensitivity by a stop or so. ( S/N ratio of 70,000/30 = 2,300 is only about half that of the DCS back, so a stop lost there too. Bigger sensors seem generally to have a bit more noise; maybe the size makes heat harder to dissipate.

[Mike Saxon]

Nice review, Michael, of the Leaf Valeo back. You wrote "And, at 22MP it offers the largest sized single shot imaging chip yet seen in a digital back or camera."

There does exist a chip to REALLY salivate over - at 85 megapixels (9216x9216 pixels in a 8x8 cm array) Fairchild Iimaging CCD array

Any chance of your getting the camera which houses this chip on loan (presumably from folks like NASA or US Dept of Defence, etc) for a review?

And the cost? I suspect a case of  "even if you have to ask, you can't have it!"

Mike

[dbarthel]

Further, it seems to be black and white, as no mention of a Bayer pattern is mentioned. Guess the spooks don't need color.