Hughes Aircraft Company

Hughes Danbury Optical Systems, Inc.

The Perkin-elmer Corporation

Redwood Microsystems, Inc.

Richard R Poole

Enrique Garcia

William G America

Lynn David Bollinger

George J Gardopee

William America

Michael P Power

A charge-coupled imaging device (FIG.,) is thinned to allow for backside illumination. The device is further enhanced using ion implantation techniques to establish an electrical field (,) at the back surface, which functions to drive free electrons to potential wells generated beneath a gate structure (,) on the front surface. The device structure allows for both front side and backside illumination and is useful as a imaging device in applications where it is necessary to combine images from two different optical sources. The imaging device is particularly useful in terrestrial guidance systems (FIG.,) where the imaging device is used to detect guide stars from a large guide star field. In such systems, the imaging device must be translated within an X-Y plane in order to cover the entire guide star field. In order to accurately know the position of the imaging device, optical fiducial marks are imaged onto a side of the imaging device opposite the side receiving the guide star photons. Using the two-sided imaging device allows for the elimination of optical elements necessary for combining the optical signals, particular the use of beam splitters.

Two-sided solid-state imager in a navigational device

A support and positioning apparatus (10) for supporting and positioning a wafer (12), substrate or the like in a plasma assisted chemical etching process. Surround components (14, 16, 18, 20) positioned around the substrate (12) are comprised of substantially pure magnesium or are aluminum coated with a magnesium fluoride coating such that as a plasma tool associated with the plasma etching process traverses the edge of the substrate (12), the plasma etching environment generated from a fluorine containing feed gas emitted from the plasma tool does not significantly erode the surround components (14, 16, 18, 20) or cause contamination of the substrate (12).

Highly durable noncontaminating surround materials for plasma etching

A laminated structure includes a wafer member with a membrane attached thereto, the membrane being formed of substantially hydrogen-free boron nitride having a nominal composition B.sub.3 N. The structure may be a component in a mechanical device for effecting a mechanical function, or the membrane may form a masking layer on the wafer. The structure includes a body formed of at least two wafer members laminated together with a cavity formed therebetween, with the boron nitride membrane extending into the cavity so as to provide the structural component such as a support for a heating element or a membrane in a gas valve. In another aspect borom is selectively diffused from the boron nitride into a &lt;100&gt; surface of a silicon wafer. The surface is then exposed to EDP etchant to which the diffusion layer is resistant, thereby forming a channel the wafer member with smooth walls for fluid flow.

Boron nutride membrane in wafer structure

A method for fabricating thinned, back-illuminated, solid state image sensors 10 includes steps of positively doping a bottom surface 22 of a top semiconductor wafer 24, and bonding the bottom surface 22 of the top semiconductor wafer 24 to a top surface 26 of a bottom semiconductor wafer 28 with a silicon dioxide passivation layer 34 in between. The top wafer 24 is thinned and an insulating layer of silicon dioxide 36 and a polysilicon gate structure 38 are formed thereover. Individual dies 40 are then formed, which are bonded to a substrate 42 along each pixel face. The bottom semiconductor wafer layer 28 is etched away to expose the silicon dioxide passivation layer 34, which acts to protect the thinned top wafer layer 24. The dies 40 are then etched to expose bonding pads within the gate structure 38, and sized to create thinned, back-illuminated, solid state image sensors 10.

Method of fabricating high quantum efficiency solid state sensors

A standard thick silicon charge-coupled device (FIG. 1A) has its pixel face mounted to a transparent, optically flat glass substrate using a thin layer of thermoset epoxy. The backside silicon of the charge-coupled device is thinned to 10 .+-.0.5 um using a two-step chemi-mechanical process. The bulk silicon is thinned to 75 um with a 700 micro-grit aluminium oxide abrasive and is then thinned and polished to 10 um using 80 nm grit colloidal silica. Access from the backside to the aluminum bonding pads (36 of FIG. 5) of the device is achieved by photolithographic patterning and reactive ion etching of the silicon above the bonding pads. The charge-coupled device is then packaged and wire-bonded in a structure which offers support for the silicon membrane and allows for unobstructed backside illumination.

Method for making thinned charge-coupled devices

A charge-coupled imaging device (FIG. 3) is thinned to allow for backside illumination. The device is further enhanced using ion implantation techniques to establish an electrical field (44) at the back surface, which functions to drive free electrons to potential wells generated beneath a gate structure (40) on the front surface. The device structure allows for both front side and backside illumination and is useful as an imaging device in applications where it is necessary to combine images from two different optical sources. The imaging device is particularly useful in terrestrial guidance systems (FIG. 5) where the imaging device is used to detect guide stars from a large guide star field. In such systems, the imaging device must be translated within an X-Y plane in order to cover the entire guide star field. In order to accurately know the position of the imaging device, optical fiducial marks are imaged onto a side of the imaging device opposite the side receiving the guide star photons. Using the two-sided imaging device allows for the elimination of optical elements necessary for combining the optical signals, particular the use of beam splitters.

Growing community of inventors

Norwalk, CT, United States of America

Richard R Poole