Omnivision Technologies, Inc.

Sohei Manabe

Keiji Mabuchi

Duli Mao

Howard E Rhodes

Jeong-Ho Lyu

Hsin-Chih Tai

Hidetoshi Nozaki

Vincent Venezia

Takayuki Goto

Dyson Hsinchih Tai

Gang Chen

Dajiang Yang

Tiejun Dai

Boyd Fowler

Oray Orkun Cellek

Lindsay Alexander Grant

Zhiqiang Lin

Yin Qian

Bill Phan

Johannes Solhusvik

Rongsheng Yang

Sing-Chung Hu

Trygve Willassen

Wei Dong Qian

Rui Wang

Hiroaki Ebihara

Zheng Yang

Eric A G Webster

Liping Deng

Eiichi Funatsu

Kevin W Johnson

Xianmin Yi

Ashish A Shah

Woon Il Choi

Keh-Chiang Ku

Kazufumi Watanabe

Bowei Zhang

Jingzhou Zhang

Philip John Cizdziel

Siguang Ma

William Qian

Eric Webster

Jens Landgraf

Sasidhar Saladi

Jingming Yao

Mamoru Iesaka

Satyadev Nagaraia

Hongtao Yao

Nagaraja Satyadev

Hsin-Chih (Dyson) Tai

Howard M Rhodes

Woon Ii Choi

A pixel circuit includes a photodiode in semiconductor material to accumulate image charge in response to incident light. A tri-gate charge transfer block coupled includes a single shared channel region the semiconductor material. A transfer gate, shutter gate, and switch gate are disposed proximate to the single shared channel region. The transfer gate transfers image charge accumulated in the photodiode to the single shared channel region in response to a transfer signal. The shutter gate transfers the image charge in the single shared channel region to a floating diffusion in the semiconductor material in response to a shutter signal. The switch gate is configured to couple the single shared channel region to a charge storage structure in the semiconductor material in response to a switch signal.

Tri-gate charge transfer block structure in time of flight pixel

Low noise silicon-germanium (SiGe) image sensor. In one embodiment, an image sensor includes a plurality of pixels arranged in rows and columns of a pixel array disposed in a semiconductor substrate. The photodiodes of an individual pixel are configured to receive an incoming light through an illuminated surface of the semiconductor substrate. The semiconductor substrate includes a first layer of semiconductor material having silicon (Si); and a second layer of semiconductor material having silicon germanium (Si1-xGex). A concentration x of Ge changes gradually through at least a portion of thickness of the second layer. Each photodiode includes a first doped region extending through the first layer of semiconductor material and the second layer of semiconductor material; and a second doped region extending through the first layer of semiconductor material and the second layer of semiconductor material.

Low noise silicon germanium image sensor

An image sensor includes a photodiode disposed in a semiconductor material to generate image charge in response to incident light, and a first transfer gate is coupled to the photodiode to extract image charge from the photodiode in response to a first transfer signal. A first storage gate is coupled to the first transfer gate to receive the image charge from the first transfer gate, and a first output gate is coupled to the first storage gate to receive the image charge from the first storage gate. A first capacitor is coupled to the first output gate to store the image charge.

Wide dynamic range image sensor with global shutter

A sensor includes a photodiode disposed in a semiconductor material to receive light and convert the light into charge, and a first floating diffusion coupled to the photodiode to receive the charge. A second floating diffusion is coupled to the photodiode to receive the charge, and a first transfer transistor is coupled to transfer the charge from the photodiode into the first floating diffusion. A second transfer transistor is coupled to transfer the charge from the photodiode into the second floating diffusion, and an inductor is coupled between a first gate terminal of the first transfer transistor and a second gate terminal of the second transfer transistor. The inductor, the first gate terminal, and the second gate terminal form a resonant circuit.

Sensor comprising gate modulation with inductor to form a resonant circuit

An image sensor has an array of pixels, each pixel having an associated shutter transistor coupled to transfer a charge dependent on light exposure of the pixel onto an image storage capacitor, the image-storage capacitors being configured to be read into an analog to digital converter. The shutter transistors are P-type transistors in N-wells, the wells held at an analog power voltage to reduce sensitivity of pixels to dark current; in an alternative embodiment the shutter transistors are N-type transistors in P-wells, the wells held at an analog ground voltage.

Dark current reduction for image sensor having electronic global shutter and image storage capacitors

An image sensor has an array of pixel blocks, and each pixel block having associated shutter transistors with each coupled to transfer an image signal comprising a charge dependent on light exposure of a selected pixel onto an image storage capacitor of a plurality of image storage capacitors associated with the pixel block, the image storage capacitors of the pixel block configured to be read through a differential amplifier into an analog to digital converter. The differential amplifier of each pixel block receives a second input from a single reset-sampling capacitor associated with the pixel block. The single reset-sampling capacitor is loaded when the pixels of the pixel block are reset.

Image sensor with electronic global shutter and differential sensing using reset-sampling capacitor shared among multiple image storage capacitors

An image sensor including a photodiode, a first doped region, a second doped region, a first storage node, a second storage node, a first vertical transfer gate, and a second vertical transfer gate is presented. The photodiode is disposed in a semiconductor material to convert image light to an electric signal. The first doped region and the second doped region are disposed in the semiconductor material between a first side of the semiconductor material and the photodiode. The first doped region is positioned between the first storage node and the second storage node while the second doped region is positioned between the second storage node and the first doped region. The vertical transfer gates are coupled between the photodiode to transfer the electric signal from the photodiode to a respective one of the storage nodes in response to a signal.

Image sensor with boosted photodiodes for time of flight measurements

A pixel cell includes a photodiode disposed in a semiconductor material layer to accumulate image charge photogenerated in the photodiode in response to incident light. A storage transistor is coupled to the photodiode to store the image charge photogenerated in the photodiode. The storage transistor includes a storage gate disposed proximate a first surface of the semiconductor material layer. The storage gate includes a pair of vertical transfer gate (VTG) portions. Each one of the pair of VTG portions extends a first distance into the semiconductor material layer through the first surface of the semiconductor material layer. A storage node is disposed below the first surface of the semiconductor material layer and between the pair of VTG portions of the storage gate to store the image charge transferred from the photodiode in response to a storage signal.

Vertical transfer gate storage for a global shutter in an image sensor

A pixel array for use in a high dynamic range image sensor includes a plurality of pixels arranged in a plurality of rows and columns in the pixel array. Each one of the pixels includes a linear subpixel and a log subpixel disposed in a semiconductor material. The linear subpixel is coupled to generate a linear output signal having a linear response, and the log subpixel is coupled to generate a log output signal having a logarithmic response in response to the incident light. A bitline is coupled to the linear subpixel and to the log subpixel to receive the linear output signal and the log output signal. The bitline is one of a plurality of bitlines coupled to the plurality of pixels. Each one of the plurality of bitlines is coupled to a corresponding grouping of the plurality of pixels.

Linear-logarithmic image sensor

An active depth imaging system and method of operating the same captures illuminator-on and illuminator-off image data with each of a first and second imager. The illuminator-on image data includes information representing an imaged scene and light emitted from an illuminator and reflected off of objects within the imaged scene. The illuminator-off image data includes information representing the imaged scene without the light emitted from the illuminator. For each image set captured by the first and second imagers, illuminator-off image data is subtracted from the illuminator-on image data to identify the illuminated light within the scene. The depth of an object at which the light is incident on then is determined by the subtracted image data of the first and second imagers.

Systems and methods for active depth imager with background subtract

An image sensor includes a substrate and a plurality of infrared pixels formed in a front side of the substrate and configured to detect infrared light incident on the front side of the substrate. Each of the infrared pixels includes a photodiode, a region free of implants located above the photodiode, and a photogate formed over the substrate and above the photodiode. The image sensor also includes a plurality of color pixels dispersed among the infrared pixels, where each of the color pixels includes a pinned photodiode and is configured to detect visible light. The photodiode of each of the infrared pixels can include a deep charge-accumulation region underlying the pinned photodiode(s) of one or more neighboring color pixel(s). Methods of manufacturing also described and include forming the deep charge-accumulation regions and associated elements prior to forming any implant-blocking elements (e.g., polysilicon photogates) over the substrate.

Photogate for front-side-illuminated infrared image sensor and method of manufacturing the same

An image sensor is provided. The image sensor includes: a first pixel column, including: a first pixel unit; a second pixel unit, vertically adjacent to the first pixel unit; a first column bit line coupled to the first pixel unit, wherein image data acquired by the first pixel unit is read out through the first column bit line; and a second column bit line coupled to the second pixel unit, wherein image data acquired by the second pixel unit is read out through the second column bit line; and a second pixel column horizontally adjacent to the first pixel column, wherein the first pixel column and the second pixel column are mirror-symmetrical with respect to a connection between the pixel units and the column bit lines.

Image sensor having mirror-symmetrical pixel columns

An image sensor including a photodiode, a floating diffusion region, a first, second, and third doped region of a semiconductor material, and a first capacitor is presented. The photodiode is disposed in the semiconductor material to generate image charge in response to incident light. The floating diffusion region is disposed in the semiconductor material proximate to the photodiode. The floating diffusion region is at least partially surrounded by the first doped region of the semiconductor material. The second doped region and the third doped region of the semiconductor material each have an opposite polarity of the floating diffusion region and the first doped region. The floating diffusion region and at least part of the first doped region are laterally disposed between the second doped region and the third doped region.

Floating diffusion of image sensor with low leakage current

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San Jose, CA, United States of America

Sohei Manabe