Sensor arrays, method for operating a sensor array and a computer program for performing a method for operating a sensor array

A method for operating a sensor array, wherein the sensor array comprises:

• a base for providing a probe signal;
• and
• a plurality of modular recording sites, wherein each modular recording site of the plurality of modular recording sites comprises:
• a CMOS substrate;
• at least one sensor element configured for receiving an analog signal;
• an in-situ analog-to-digital converter configured for converting the analog signal into a digital sensor signal;
• and
• a communication interface configured to provide the digital sensor signal to the base,
• wherein communication interfaces of the plurality of modular recording sites are connected serially with respect to each other and to the base,
• wherein the in-situ analog-to-digital converter is configured to operate in a first operating mode of performing a first quantization of the analog signal using a first quantization setting and acquiring a residual error from the first quantization and to operate in a second operating mode of performing a second quantization of the residual error using a second quantization setting which is different from the first quantization setting of the in-situ analog-to-digital converter, and
• wherein the method comprises:
• recording of a signal with a sensor of a modular recording site of the plurality of modular recording sites of the sensor array;
• converting of the signal into a plurality of digital sensor signals using the plurality of modular recording sites of the sensor array by operating each analog-to-digital converter in the first operating mode and in the second operating mode to acquire the digital sensor signal;
• providing of the plurality of digital sensor signals to the base of the sensor array using the communication interfaces of the plurality of modular recording sites of the sensor array;
• receiving of the plurality of digital sensor signals from the plurality of modular recording sites of the sensor array with the base of the sensor array;
• processing of the plurality of digital sensor signals by the base of the sensor array so as to acquire the probe signal;
• and
• providing the probe signal with the base of the sensor array for a remote device.