Patent ID: 7488945

Claim:
An apparatus, comprising: a pixel capable of detecting photons, said pixel comprising at least two subpixels, said subpixels comprising at least one of an offset subdivision of said pixel, an asymmetrical subdivision of said pixel, or a concentric subdivision of said pixel, or a combination thereof, a count circuit capable of counting photons detected by said pixel at a count rate based at least in part on the number of photons detected by said at least two subpixels, said count circuit being coupled to at least a first one of the subpixels; and a switch coupled to a second one of the subpixels; wherein said switch is capable of coupling the second one of the subpixels to the count circuit at a lower photon flux level, and is capable of decoupling the second one of the subpixels from the count circuit at a higher photon flux level.