Panasonic G9 has a 20.0MP Four Thirds (17.3 x 13 mm ) sized CMOS sensor . On the other hand, Olympus XZ-2 iHS has a 12.0MP 1/1.7-inch (7.44 x 5.58 mm ) sized CMOS sensor .
Panasonic G9's sensor provides 8MP more than Olympus XZ-2 iHS's sensor, which gives a significant advantage in real life. You can print your images larger or crop more freely.
On the other hand, please keep in mind that Max sensor resolution is not the only determinant of resolving power. Factors such as the optical elements, low pass filter, pixel size and sensor technology also affects the final resolution of the captured image.
Another difference between these two cameras is that Panasonic G9's sensor lacks anti-alias (Low-Pass) filter. Removing anti-alias filter increases the sharpness and level of detail but at the same time, it increases the chance of moire occurring in certain scenes.
Below you can see the G9 and XZ-2 iHS sensor size comparison.
![Panasonic G9 vs Olympus XZ-2 iHS Sensor Size Comparison]()
Sensor Size and Resolution Comparison image of Panasonic G9 and Olympus XZ-2 iHS Cameras
As seen above, Panasonic G9 has a 5.4x Larger sensor area than Olympus XZ-2 iHS. Larger sensors give photographer more control on the depth of field and blurry background compared to smaller sensor when shot in same focal length and aperture.