Integration time optimization for integrating photosensors

We maximized the information transmission for an integrating photosensor by optimizing the integration time. As a case study, experimentally determined reset, readout and photocurrent shot noise was used to determine the capacity of a differential active pixel sensor as a function of illumination level and integration time. Experimentally derived data show that the information rate is poor at both small and large integration times, with a maximum information rate occurring between these extremes. This maximum occurs at different integration times for different illumination levels and is used to determine the optimal integration time for the sensor.