Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha Corporation

Takeo Ushinaga

Yoshinao Morikawa

Shinji Hattori

An AD conversion circuit provided in a solid-state image sensor includes a counter circuit that performs count processing and a first latch circuit that holds at least one of a discrimination result of a first comparison circuit and a first output result of the counter circuit.

Solid-state image sensor

An AD converter includes a comparator that compares a potential of a pixel signal line with a reference potential that is a potential of a ramp waveform changing with time, a counter that stops a counting operation in response to a change in an output of the comparator, and an all-bit latch unit that holds all bits of a count value subsequent to stopping the counting operation during the second count period. The counter sets an initial value for the counting operation during the first count period to be a negative value, and prior to the counting operation during the second count period, inverts all bits of the count value subsequent to stopping the counting operation during the first count period.

AD converter and solid-state imaging device

[Object] To prevent code skipping in decoding. [Solution] Included are a low-order bit latch unit () that latches digital code data as a low-order bit, a high-order bit counter unit () that counts one or both of edges of a control signal corresponding to a reference clock, and stops counting of high-order bits, triggered by output of a comparator () being inverted, a low-order bit decoding signal latch unit () that latches a low-order bit decoding signal, and a signal processing unit ().

Analog-to-digital converter and solid-state image sensor

Provided are a solid-state imaging element which can be simply manufactured and can control movement of electric charges in an accumulation region with a high degree of accuracy, and a method of manufacturing the same. A solid-state imaging element () includes a substrate () having a first conductivity type; an accumulation region () having a second conductivity type and provided in the substrate (); a read-out region () for receiving the transferred electric charges accumulated in the accumulation region (); and a transfer section () for transferring the electric charges from the accumulation region () to the read-out region (). An impurity concentration modulation regionhaving a locally high concentration of an impurity having the second conductivity type, or having a locally low concentration of an impurity having the first conductivity type is formed in a part of the accumulation region (). An area of the impurity concentration modulation region () per unit distance with respect to the transfer section (), or a density of the discretely provided impurity concentration modulation region () increases with decreasing distance to the transfer section ().

Solid-state imaging element and method of manufacturing the same

A means for correcting tilts and positional deviations from a stereo image is rendered unnecessary. The present invention has a solid-state imaging elementon which a plurality of light receiving sections for photoelectrically converting and imaging an image light from a subject are arranged in a matrix pattern and a lens meanswith a single focal point on an imaging surface of the solid-state imaging element. The present invention is configured to simultaneously or chronologically expose and image each imaging light from a subject entering different positions of the lens meansas a plurality of images in a plurality of imaging regions for each predetermined imaging regions of the solid-state imaging element

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Sakai, Japan

Takeo Ushinaga