# Photon Inhibition for Energy-Efficient Single-Photon Imaging

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2409.18337 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2409.18337/

## Key facts

- Cited by 1 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 15 of its 64 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 26 Sep 2024.

## Builds on (most cited first, 15 of 15)

- [Event-based Vision: A Survey](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1904.08405/) (2019)
- [Holistically-Nested Edge Detection](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1504.06375/) (2015)
- [Learning to Predict Indoor Illumination from a Single Image](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1704.00090/) (2017)
- [A megapixel time-gated SPAD image sensor for 2D and 3D imaging applications](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1912.12910/) (2019)
- [Quanta Burst Photography](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2006.11840/) (2020)
- [High Flux Passive Imaging with Single-Photon Sensors](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1902.10190/) (2019)
- [Dynamic Low-light Imaging with Quanta Image Sensors](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2007.08614/) (2020)
- [Passive Inter-Photon Imaging](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2104.00059/) (2021)
- [What Does a One-Bit Quanta Image Sensor Offer?](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2208.10350/) (2022)
- [SoDaCam: Software-defined Cameras via Single-Photon Imaging](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2309.00066/) (2023)
- [HDR Imaging with Quanta Image Sensors: Theoretical Limits and Optimal Reconstruction](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2011.03614/) (2020)
- [Adaptive Gating for Single-Photon 3D Imaging](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2111.15047/) (2021)
- [Spatially Varying Exposure with 2-by-2 Multiplexing: Optimality and Universality](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2306.17367/) (2023)
- [Exposure-Referred Signal-to-Noise Ratio for Digital Image Sensors](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2112.05817/) (2021)
- [Beyond Binomial and Negative Binomial: Adaptation in Bernoulli Parameter Estimation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1809.08801/) (2018)

## Built on by (most cited first, 1 of 1)

- [Practical Noise Modeling for SPAD Intensity Imaging](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2608.00489/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Single-photon cameras (SPCs) are emerging as sensors of choice for various challenging imaging applications. One class of SPCs based on the single-photon avalanche diode (SPAD) detects individual photons using an avalanche process; the raw photon data can then be processed to extract scene information under extremely low light, high dynamic range, and rapid motion. Yet, single-photon sensitivity in SPADs comes at a cost -- each photon detection consumes more energy than that of a CMOS camera. This avalanche power significantly limits sensor resolution and could restrict widespread adoption of SPAD-based SPCs. We propose a computational-imaging approach called photon inhibition to address this challenge. Photon inhibition strategically allocates detections in space and time based on downstream inference task goals and resource constraints. We develop lightweight, on-sensor computational inhibition policies that use past photon data to disable SPAD pixels in real-time, to select the most informative future photons. As case studies, we design policies tailored for image reconstruction and edge detection, and demonstrate, both via simulations and real SPC captured data, considerable reduction in photon detections (over 90% of photons) while maintaining task performance metrics. Our work raises the question of ``which photons should be detected?'', and paves the way for future energy-efficient single-photon imaging.