Electron-multiplication image sensor
US9040890B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Mar 22, 2012 |
| Grant date | May 26, 2015 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Aug 17, 2033 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH10F39/802
- WIPO fieldAudio-visual technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
This description relates to active-pixel image sensors. Each pixel includes, at the surface of a semiconductor active layer, a photodiode region, a charge storage node and a transfer structure for transferring charges from the photodiode to the storage node after a charge integration time for charges generated by the light in the photodiode. The transfer structure includes a first transfer gate adjacent to the photodiode, a second transfer gate adjacent to the storage node, and an electron-multiplication amplifying structure located between the first and second transfer gates. The amplifying structure includes two separate accelerating gates and an intermediate diode region at a fixed surface potential, located between the two accelerating gates. A succession of alternating high and low potentials is applied to the accelerating gates while the charges are in transit in the transfer structure, before they are transferred to the storage node.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.