MUNICH, Germany — Deviated from its hall sensor technology, chip vendor Micronas (Zurich, Switzerland), has developed a CMOS-based gas sensor that can be monolithically integrated on the same die with the processing circuitry.

The company has developed a semiconductor platform, dubbed mySens which contains a gas sensor and the related circuitry. This combination is unique in the industry, allowing for a higher degree of integration and flexibility, the company claims.

The sensors are manufactured using standard CMOS processes and can be tailored to customers' needs. For instance, the device can be designed to react on one or several specific gases. Currently the platform is in the status of a demonstrator; however, the company plans to provide first products later this year.

Since the sensor as well as the circuitry can be adapted to customer's needs in a wide range, the company also plans to serve a variety of potential customers with sales efforts focusing on industrial and medical applications. "There are no restrictions with regard to the functional range", explained Micronas Marketing Director Peter Zimmermann. "It can be used in building technology as well as in chemical process technology or in medical applications, for instance to measure the chemical signature of the air exhaled."

Automotive applications also would be possible but here the company first would have to overcome current temperature restrictions for the platform, Zimmermann said.

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