Toshiba has closed down its plant that produces logic ICs and CMOS image sensors (CIS), including those for handsets, in Iwate, Japan because of the power failure caused by the March 11 earthquake, and the move is expected to worsen the already tight supply, according to sources from the industry.

However, other CIS suppliers including OmniVision, Samsung Electronics and Aptina should see their supply remain stable.

As Toshiba is a CIS supplier for Nokia, it remains to be seen if Toshiba's shipments will be disrupted by the plant suspension, the sources noted.

Currently, most Japan-based makers are producing CCD-based image sensors for handset and DSC applications and the disruption to CCD image sensor production may push Japan's makers to switch to CIS parts, the sources indicated.

Global shipments of CCD-based image sensors for DSC applications totaled 94.1 million units in 2010, compared to 30 million units of CIS parts, according to market data. However, shipments of camera-use CIS chips are expected to top 70 million units in 2013, according to an estimate of market research firms.