Nano-Cameras: A Key Enabling Technology...

Nanotechnology is enabling the development of a new generation of devices which are able to sense, process and communicate, while being in the scale of tens to hundreds of cubic nanometers. Such small, imperceptible devices enhance not only current applications but enable entirely new paradigms. This paper introduces the concept of nano-cameras, which are built upon nanoscale photodetectors, lenses and electronic circuitry. The state-of-the-art in nanoscale photodetectors and lenses is presented and the expected performance of nano-cameras is numerically evaluated through simulation studies. Finally, the open challenges towards integrating nano-cameras in practical applications and ultimately building the Internet of Multimedia Nano-Things are discussed.