Aptina Imaging Corporation

Apple Inc.

Semiconductor Components Industries, LLC

Brigham Young University

Hong-Wei Lee

Jeffery S Beck

Sergey Velichko

Aaron Roe Hawkins

Erin Hanelt

An imaging apparatus includes a semiconductor substrate and a stack of layers of one or more dielectric materials and one or more conducting materials formed on the semiconductor substrate so as to define an array of pixel circuits including respective pixel electrodes at an upper layer of the stack of layers of one or more dielectric materials and one or more conducting materials and logic circuitry in an area adjacent to the array of pixel circuits. A light-absorbing layer is formed on the upper layer of the stack of layers of one or more dielectric materials and one or more conducting materials so as to overlie the area containing the logic circuitry and configured to absorb at least 90% of light that is incident on the light-absorbing layer. A layer of a photosensitive medium overlies the pixel electrodes.

Film-based image sensor with suppressed light reflection and flare artifact

An imaging apparatus includes a semiconductor substrate, an array of pixel circuits formed on the semiconductor substrate and including respective pixel electrodes. A layer of a photosensitive medium overlies the pixel electrodes and has a lower surface in electrical contact with the pixel electrodes, and is configured to convert incident photons into charge carriers, which are collected by the pixel electrodes. A planar conductive top electrode, which is at least partially transparent, overlies an upper surface of the photosensitive medium. A bias circuit is formed on the semiconductor substrate and configured to provide a bias potential for application to the photosensitive medium. A bias contact extends from the bias circuit to the top electrode so as to apply the bias potential to the top electrode while contacting the top electrode along a plane that is parallel to the upper surface of the photosensitive medium.

Film-based image sensor with planarized contacts

In order to reduce dark current and pixel readout noise in an image sensor, pixels may include a p-type hole-based pinned photodiode. Charge stored in the p-type pinned photodiode may be transferred to a p-type floating diffusion (FD) node and read out by pixel circuitry that uses p-channel metal oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors (p-channel MOSFET). Additionally, the pixel circuitry may be split across multiple wafers that are connected by metal interconnect layers. This arrangement may enable the pixel photodiode to have a larger size than if all of the pixel circuitry was in a single wafer.

Pixel and circuit design for image sensors with hole-based photodiodes

An anti-resonant reflecting optical waveguide structure for reducing optical crosstalk in an image sensor and method of forming the same. The method includes forming a trench within a plurality of material layers and over a photo-conversion device. The trench is vertically aligned with the photo-conversion device and is filled with materials of varying refractive indices to form an anti-resonant reflecting optical waveguide structure. The anti-resonant reflecting optical waveguide structure has a core and at least two cladding structures. The cladding structure in contact with the core has a refractive index that is higher than the refractive index of the core and the refractive index of the other cladding structure. The cladding structures act as Fabry-Perot cavities for light propagating in the transverse direction, such that light entering the anti-resonant reflecting optical waveguide structure remains confined to the core. This reduces the chance of photons impinging upon neighboring photo-conversion devices.

Anti-resonant reflecting optical waveguide for imager light pipe

Methods, systems and apparatuses for an imager that improve the quality of a captured image. The imager includes a pixel having a photosensor that generates charge in response to receiving electromagnetic radiation and a storage region that stores the generated charge. A protection region assists in keeping undesirable charge from reaching the storage region.

Method and apparatus for decreasing storage node parasitic charge in active pixel image sensors

An input signal comprising electronic carriers is injected into an impact ionization device with a high electric field whereupon the electronic carriers are accelerated toward an electron collector or hole sink and subsequently ionize additional electrons and holes that accelerated toward the electron collector and hole sink respectively. When properly biased an avalanche effect may occur that is proportional to the current injected into the impact ionization device via the input electrode. As a result, the input signal is amplified to provide an amplified signal. The described amplifier may be integrated with an input device such as a photodiode, and a transimpedance output amplifier onto a common substrate resulting in high performance high density sensor arrays and the like.

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San Jose, CA, United States of America

Hong-Wei Lee