Computer Science > Emerging Technologies
[Submitted on 3 Sep 2026]
Title:STEMPix: A Phase-Transition-Material-Based Pixel Sensor for Resolving Edge-Movement Direction
View PDFAbstract:This paper proposes a spatio-temporal edge-movement direction pixel (STEMPix) for generating compact direction-aware edge movement information inside a CMOS-compatible image sensor array. The proposed design targets specialized sensing applications where local boundary movement is more important than full-frame intensity reconstruction. Instead of transferring full multi-bit frames for external processing, STEMPix generates a 3-bit local edge direction code (LEDC) by combining pixel-level temporal change information with neighboring-pixel spatial edge information. We design the architecture using a two-tier organization, where the photodiode layer is separated from the computation layer to preserve light-collection area while accommodating the additional in-array processing circuitry. The proposed circuit is evaluated through HSPICE transient simulations. The estimated implementation achieves a horizontal pitch of 1.73 {\mu}m, a vertical pitch of 2.36 {\mu}m, and a geometric fill factor of 95.47%. The average active switching energy is 0.465 fJ per LEDC operation across representative edge-movement cases. The proposed STEMPix operation also supports global-shutter capture and dynamic thresholding. These results indicate that STEMPix can provide a compact and scalable front-end representation for edge-movement-aware sensing systems.
Submission history
From: Md Rahatul Islam Udoy [view email][v1] Thu, 3 Sep 2026 19:56:51 UTC (2,713 KB)
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Facts Only
* The proposal introduces STEMPix, a spatio-temporal edge-movement direction pixel.
* The goal is to generate compact direction-aware edge movement information inside a CMOS-compatible image sensor array.
* LEDC is generated by combining pixel-level temporal change and neighboring-pixel spatial edge information.
* The architecture uses a two-tier organization separating the photodiode layer from the computation layer.
* HSPICE transient simulations were used for circuit evaluation.
* Estimated physical dimensions are $1.73 \mu\text{m}$ horizontal pitch and $2.36 \mu\text{m}$ vertical pitch.
* The geometric fill factor is $95.47\%$.
* The average active switching energy is $0.465 \text{fJ}$ per LEDC operation.
* The operation supports global-shutter capture and dynamic thresholding.
Executive Summary
Full Take
The development of STEMPix points toward a fundamental shift in sensor design, prioritizing information density and localized relevance over traditional full-frame data transfer. The core implication is moving computational intelligence closer to the sensor plane, aiming for "sense-then-process" capabilities directly at the edge. The focus on generating direction codes rather than raw intensity suggests an architectural commitment to efficiency in specialized domains where boundary detection is the primary signal of interest.
The pattern observed is a push toward highly specialized, domain-specific hardware solutions that maximize information throughput by discarding irrelevant data, which aligns with principles of efficiency and reduced data bandwidth. The challenge lies in translating these compact codes into robust, generalizable sensing modalities while maintaining high fidelity. A critical question arises regarding the trade-off: does the significant reduction in frame data facilitate a real-world advantage for edge-movement applications, or does the complexity of encoding directionality introduce new sources of error that must be accounted for? Furthermore, how does this localized processing paradigm integrate with existing large-scale CMOS manufacturing constraints to ensure scalability without sacrificing the demonstrated energy efficiency?