Ecole Polytechnique Federale De Lausanne

Fastree 3d Bv

Rambus Inc.

Stmicroelectronics (research & Development) Limited

Technische Universiteit Delft

The University of Edinburgh

Edoardo Charbon

Cristiano Niclass

Robert Bogdan Staszewski

Priyanka Kumar

Marek Gersbach

Julian Charles Nolan

Martin Vetterli

Robert K Henderson

Luciano Sbaiz

Justin Richardson

Sabine Susstrunk

Lindsay Grant

Pierre-Andre Besse

Augusto Ronchini Ximenes

Simone Frasca

Sandro Carrara

Rebecca Leghziel

Alexis Rochas

Maximilian Sergio

Mohammad Azim Karami

A method for manufacturing vias in a silicon wafer, the silicon wafer having a &#x3c;110&#x3e; crystal orientation, and having a &#x3c;111&#x3e; plane that is perpendicular to a surface of the wafer, tilted by 35.26&#xb0;, the method comprising the steps of providing a mask having a rhomboidal-shaped opening onto a surface of the silicon wafer, such that edges of the rhomboidal-shaped opening line up with a &#x3c;111&#x3e; plane of a crystalline structure of the silicon wafer, etching a hole in the silicon wafer at the rhomboidal-shaped opening, and polishing the hole after the etching by a anisotropic etching.

System and method for removing scalloping and tapering effects in high aspect ratio through-silicon vias of wafers

An oscillator arrangement for time-to-digital converters for a 3D image sensor device includes a plurality of oscillators arranged as an array each oscillator being associated to one time-to-digital converter, and at least one coupling unit respectively arranged between at least two of the oscillators, so that oscillation in the at least two oscillators at a fundamental frequency is synchronized between the at least two coupled oscillators.

Oscillator arrangement for time-to-digital converter for large array of time-of-flight image sensor devices

Time-to-digital converter system including: an event detector configured for detecting an event and generating an event detection signal upon detection of the event; and a time-to-digital converter coupled or connectable to the event detector and including a fine resolution part configured for counting fine time intervals, organized such that the fine resolution part is activated in response to the event detection signal and deactivated in response to a reference clock. 3D imager including an array of pixels, with in each pixel such a time-to-digital converter system, and further including a reference clock generator.

Time-to-digital converter and method therefor

3D imager including at least one pixel, each pixel including a photodetector for detecting photon incidence and a time-to-digital converter system configured for referencing the photon incidence to a reference clock, and further including a reference clock generator provided for generating the reference clock, wherein the reference clock generator is configured for adjusting the frequency of the reference clock on the basis of an estimated time up to a subsequent photon incidence.

Waveguide structure for propagating a surface plasmon polariton, including an inter-metal plasmonic waveguide (). The waveguide structure has two metal strip like structures () positioned parallel to each other and an isolating material structure () positioned between the two metal strip like structures (). The two metal strip like structures () are positioned at a fixed distance (d) from each other. The inter-metal plasmonic waveguide () is provided in a single layer of a CMOS processed substrate (). Several waveguide structures () may be combined with a crystal like structure () to build logic gates, such as a switch having a gate, source and drain terminal (G,S,D). Using three dimensional designs spanning several layers in a CMOS processed substrate () very complex yet compact logic circuits may be designed.

Plasmonic waveguides, circuits, and systems

The present invention concerns a time-of-flight based imaging system having a photon emitter used as an illumination source, a photon sensor, and an electronic system for delivering a signal depending on the reception time of photons by said photon detector. The electronic display is used as the photonic source.

Time-of-flight based imaging system using a display as illumination source

Integrated receiving circuit for radiofrequency signals an amplifying element using the multiplication zone of a reverse biased semiconductor junction operating in Geiger mode for amplifying an input radiofrequency signal (Vin) and converting it into a digital signal. And a digital part for digitally processing the digital signal.

Integrated receiving circuit and method for radiofrequency and high speed signals

In previously known imaging devices as in still and motion cameras, for example, image sensor signal response typically is linear as a function of intensity of incident light. Desirably, however, akin to the response of the human eye, response is sought to be nonlinear and, more particularly, essentially logarithmic. Preferred nonlinearity is realized in image sensor devices of the invention upon severely limiting the number of pixel states, combined with clustering of pixels into what may be termed as super-pixels.

Image sensor having nonlinear response

Integrated circuit () comprising: The read-out circuit may comprise a transformer for decoupling the SPAD from other parts of said read-out circuit.

Integrated circuit comprising an array of single photon avalanche diodes

A semiconductor device includes a semiconductor substrate, a photon avalanche detector in the semiconductor substrate. The photon avalanche detector includes an anode of a first conductivity type and a cathode of a second conductivity type. A guard ring is in the semiconductor substrate and at least partially surrounds the photon avalanche detector. A passivation layer of the first conductivity type is in contact with the guard ring to reduce an electric field at an edge of the photon avalanche detector.

Single photon detector and associated methods for making the same

A method for controlling the spectral response of light sensitive semiconductor elements in an array () using an electric control signal (V) applied to said semiconductor elements. The light sensitive semiconductor elements could be a single photon avalanche diode () operating in Geiger mode. An image sensor has at least one light sensitive semiconductor elements and a circuit for applying a control voltage (V) to said semiconductor element so as to change its spectral response. Without being limiting, the sensor could be part of a digital camera, video camera, 3D image sensors, scanner, video telephone, autofocus system, medical image acquisition system, etc.

Controlling spectral response of photodetector for an image sensor

An integrated circuit () has an array of single photon avalanche diodes (SPADS), a plurality of read-out circuits, each SPADS being coupled to one read-out circuit, wherein at least some of the read-out circuits comprise time-to-digital converters (TDC) and/or a digital asynchronous counter. The plurality of SPADS are coupled to one single read-out circuit. The read-out circuit may have a transformer for decoupling the SPAD from other parts of the read-out circuit.

Transducer () for reading information stored 1n an optical record carrier (), comprising at least one solid-state single photon detector, for example a single photon avalanche diode () for acquisition of a 2D or 3D image of at least a portion of the optical record carrier.

Transducer for reading information stored on an optical record carrier, single photon detector based storage system and method for reading data from an optical record carrier

An integrated imager circuit having a monolithic array of single photon avalanche diodes (SPADs) for capturing an image of a scene when said scene is hit by an optical pulse. The array has a plurality of SPADs connected to 2D readout circuits which determines the intensity of the light reflected by the scene by counting the number of photons received by the SPADs during a period of time. A plurality of SPADs connected to 3D readout circuits determines the distance to the scene by determining the elapsed time between the emission of each pulse and reception of the corresponding reflected photons.

Growing community of inventors

Echandens, Switzerland

Edoardo Charbon