InGaAs Camera Market Size

InGaAs Camera Market Analysis

The InGaAs Camera Market size is estimated at USD 152.77 million in 2024, and is expected to reach USD 312.82 million by 2029, growing at a CAGR of 12.81% during the forecast period (2024-2029).

The increasing adoption of automation solutions, such as vision-guided robotic systems, and the increasing use of these cameras for contamination and defect detection are among the significant factors driving the growth of the studied market.

• InGaAs is an III-V compound semiconductor with high photosensitivity in the near-infrared (NIR) and short-wave infrared (SWIR). The InGaAs camera uses this feature in various applications, including real-time in-line non-destructive inspection. The rise in demand for line scan InGaAs cameras for machine vision applications is a crucial driver of the InGaAs camera market.
• InGaAs are cooling-based cameras used in aerospace, military, telecommunications, industrial inspection, and spectroscopy. It has infrared (IR) technology, which allows for night vision or visibility through atmospheric haze and is primarily used by military and defense forces. Because of their performance characteristics, such as small, uncooled, lightweight design, high-quality night vision, attached covert eye-safe lasers, target recognition, and sensitivity to nightglows, these cameras find many applications in defense.
• InGaAs cameras bridge the gap between NIR wavelengths 950-1700 nm, where silicon detectors no longer work, and 950 - 1700 nm, where silicon detectors are no longer sensitive. Because of its lower bandgap, InGaAs provide sensitivity over a more comprehensive NIR range. When compared to Si-CCDs, the lower bandgap is also responsible for a much higher dark current (thermally generated signal). As a result, scientific InGaAs FPA cameras require intense cooling (down to -85°C) to reduce some unwanted noise sources.
• Moreover, as a detector material, InGaAs provided an affordable alternative for near-infrared (NIR) industrial applications such as humidity measurement, surface film distributions, and sorting tasks such as separating polymers from natural materials. As a result, the use of technology in industrial manufacturing and automation is increasing.
• Industry 4.0 accelerated the development of technologies such as robots, which now play a critical role in industrial automation, with robots managing many core operations in industries. New applications for InGaAs cameras include vision-guided robotics and automated butchering. These vision-guided robots are made up of IR imagers that find and pick random parts from a bin, followed by a camera that analyzes the orientation of each part and places it on a conveyor belt.
• Furthermore, the use of machine vision is increasing year after year. Machine vision sales are at an all-time high in some regions. According to the Association for Advancing Automation, machine vision for automated inspection and guidance continued its positive growth trajectory in North America in the first half of 2022, with favorable market growth predicted throughout the year. This is expected to drive demand for InGaAs cameras in such applications during the forecast period.
• However, the higher cost of InGaAs cameras is one of the major factors impeding the growth of the studied market. Furthermore, a rise in stringent import and export regulations across various countries restrains the development of the studied market.
• During the initial COVID-19 outbreak, InGaAs cameras saw a drop in demand from various manufacturing industries, such as semiconductors, automation, and security, as the global lockdown significantly impacted the industrial sector. However, the pandemic increased awareness and drove the adoption of automation solutions, which was expected to have a long-term positive impact on the growth of the studied market.