CAPACITIVE TWO DIMENSIONAL SENSOR

A two dimensional array of electrods for sensing the presence or absence of the ridges in a fingerprint through capacitive measurements. Exciting signals are supplied from outside the array which allows the array to be fabricated from metal and insulator layers on non-semiconductor substrates such as glass or plastic using normal deposition and patterning techniques. A top protective layer consisting of hard, rigid material may be provided. The required electronic circuits are preferably located around the periphery of the array.