Case Study: University of Toronto achieves ultra-wideband single-photon video reconstruction with MathWorks

Single-Photon Camera Enables Video Playback at Any Timescale Extreme Data Acquisition Illuminates New Computer Vision Applications

The University of Toronto’s computational imaging research group faced the challenge of capturing high-speed light phenomena across an extreme range of timescales, from seconds to picoseconds. Existing camera technologies were too specialized, limiting researchers to either very fast or very slow events and forcing them to know the desired observation timescale in advance. To overcome this, they utilized a single-photon avalanche diode (SPAD) sensor and employed MathWorks MATLAB, including toolboxes for image processing, computer vision, and data acquisition.

By using MathWorks software to control their experimental setup and acquire precise photon timestamp data, the team developed a breakthrough computational imaging technique. This solution allowed them to passively capture and reconstruct light events, enabling video playback at any timescale from a single data capture. The results were profound, leading to the team receiving a prestigious best paper award at the International Conference on Computer Vision, and opened up new possibilities for applications in 3D imaging, lidar, and scientific research.

University of Toronto

Reza Emami

Senior Lecturer