Solid-state imaging device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10218922-B2
Application number	US-201815865705-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 9, 2018
Priority date	Jul 14, 2015
Publication date	Feb 26, 2019
Grant date	Feb 26, 2019

Abstract

A solid-state imaging device includes a first semiconductor substrate to which light is incident; a second semiconductor substrate stacked to the first semiconductor substrate; n first photoelectric conversion devices periodically arranged in the first semiconductor substrate and generating first electric charge signals; n first reading circuits arranged in correspondence with the n first photoelectric conversion devices in the first semiconductor substrate, respectively, each of the n first reading circuits accumulating the first electric charge signal outputting a signal voltage corresponding to the accumulated first electric charge signal as a first pixel signal; a driving circuit sequentially outputting the first pixel signal; m second photoelectric conversion devices periodically arranged in one of the first/second semiconductor substrates and generating second electric charge signals; and m second reading circuits sequentially outputting a second pixel signal, wherein m and n are natural numbers equal to 2 or more than 2.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A solid-state imaging device comprising:
a first semiconductor substrate to which light is incident;
a second semiconductor substrate that is stacked on a surface of the first semiconductor substrate, the surface being opposite with respect to a surface on which the light is incident to the first semiconductor substrate;
n first photoelectric conversion devices that are periodically arranged in the first semiconductor substrate, the n first photoelectric conversion devices generating first electric charge signals by performing photoelectric conversion of the incident light;
n first reading circuits arranged in correspondence with each of the n first photoelectric conversion devices in the first semiconductor substrate, each of the n first reading circuits accumulating the first electric charge signal generated by a corresponding one of then first photoelectric conversion devices, and each of the n first reading circuits outputting a signal voltage corresponding to the accumulated first electric charge signal as a first pixel signal;
a driving circuit that outputs the first pixel signal by sequentially driving each of the n first reading circuits;
m second photoelectric conversion devices that are periodically arranged in one of the first semiconductor substrate and the second semiconductor substrate, the m second photoelectric conversion devices generating second electric charge signals by performing photoelectric conversion of the incident light; and
m second reading circuits that sequentially output a second pixel signal indicating a change in the second electric charge signal, the second electric charge signal being generated by a corresponding second photoelectric conversion device among the m second photoelectric conversion devices,
wherein each of the m second reading circuits includes:
a detection circuit that detects a temporal change of the second electric charge signal generated by the corresponding one of the second photoelectric conversion devices and the detection circuit outputs an event signal indicating a direction of a change when a change exceeding a predetermined threshold is detected; and
a pixel signal generating circuit that is arranged in the second semiconductor substrate and the pixel signal generating circuit outputs the second pixel signal, the second pixel signal being generated by adding address information indicating a position at which the corresponding one of the second photoelectric conversion devices is arranged to the event signal,

wherein n is a natural number equal to 2 or more than 2, and
wherein m is a natural number equal to 2 or more than 2.

2. The solid-state imaging device according to claim 1 ,
wherein each of the m second reading circuits further includes an amplification circuit that is arranged in the second semiconductor substrate, the amplification circuit amplifying the second electric charge signal generated by the corresponding one of the second photoelectric conversion devices, and
wherein the detection circuit detects a change in the second electric charge signal after being amplified by the amplification circuit.

3. The solid-state imaging device according to claim 1 ,
wherein m is smaller than n, and
wherein an area in which each of the m second photoelectric conversion devices receives the light is larger than an area in which each of the n first photoelectric conversion devices receives the light.

4. The solid-state imaging device according to claim 1 ,
wherein each of the m second photoelectric conversion devices is arranged in the second semiconductor substrate, and each of the m second photoelectric conversion devices generates the second electric charge signal by performing the photoelectric conversion of light transmitted through corresponding p first photoelectric conversion devices among the n first photoelectric conversion devices, and
wherein p is a natural number equal to 1 or more than 1.

5. The solid-state imaging device according to claim 1 , further comprising a connection part that is formed between the first semiconductor substrate and the second semiconductor substrate, the connection part electrically connecting a circuit element of the first semiconductor substrate and a circuit element of the second semiconductor substrate,
wherein m is smaller than n,
wherein each of the m second photoelectric conversion devices is arranged in the first semiconductor substrate, and
wherein the connection part electrically connects the detection circuit included in each of them second reading circuits and corresponding one of the second photoelectric conversion devices.

6. The solid-state imaging device according to claim 1 , further comprising a connection part that is formed between the first semiconductor substrate and the second semiconductor substrate, the connection part electrically connecting a circuit element of the first semiconductor substrate and a circuit element of the second semiconductor substrate,
wherein the second photoelectric conversion devices are the first photoelectric conversion devices,
wherein each of the m second reading circuits sequentially outputs the second pixel signal indicating a change in the first electric charge signal, the first electric charge signal being generated by corresponding s first photoelectric conversion devices among the n first photoelectric conversion devices,
wherein the detection circuit included in each of the m second reading circuits detects a temporal change in the first electric charge signal, the first electric charge signal being generated by corresponding s first photoelectric conversion devices, and the detection circuit outputs the event signal when the temporal change exceeding a predetermined threshold is detected,
wherein the connection part electrically connects the detection circuit included in each of them second reading circuits and corresponding s first photoelectric conversion devices, and
wherein s is a natural number equal to 1 or more than 1.

7. The solid-state imaging device according to claim 6 ,
wherein m is smaller than n,
wherein s is a natural number equal to 2 or more than 2,
wherein each of the m second reading circuits furtherly includes an addition circuit that adds each of the first electric charge signals, the first electric charge signals being generated by the corresponding s first photoelectric conversion devices, and
wherein the detection circuit detects a change in the first electric charge signal after the addition performed by the addition circuit.

8. The solid-state imaging device according to claim 7 ,
wherein each of the m second reading circuits furtherly includes an amplification circuit that is arranged in the second semiconductor substrate and the amplification circuit amplifies the first electric charge signal after the addition performed by the addition circuit, and
wherein the detection circuit detects a change in the first electric charge signal after the amplification performed by the amplification circuit.

9. The solid-state imaging device according to claim 7 ,
wherein the addition circuit is arranged in the first semiconductor substrate, and
wherein the connection part electrically connects the detection circuit included in each of them second reading circuits and a corresponding addition circuit.

Assignees

• Olympus Corp

Inventors

• Kondo Toru
• Tamiya Kosei
• Watanabe Nobuyuki

Classifications

• H04N25/44 Primary

  by partially reading an SSIS array · CPC title

• H04N25/77

  Pixel circuitry, e.g. memories, A/D converters, pixel amplifiers, shared circuits or shared components · CPC title

• H04N25/79

  Arrangements of circuitry being divided between different or multiple substrates, chips or circuit boards, e.g. stacked image sensors · CPC title

• H04N5/3745

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H01L27/14636

  Electricity · mapped topic