Thermal infrared detector and manufacturing method for thermal infrared detector

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11215510-B2
Application number	US-201615345946-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 8, 2016
Priority date	May 13, 2016
Publication date	Jan 4, 2022
Grant date	Jan 4, 2022

Abstract

In a thermal infrared detector having trench structures, at least one sensor element is provided between the trench structures, an etching hole through which the sensor element is hollowed out and thereby thermally insulated is provided in a substrate rear surface or on the periphery of a pixel area, and an opening portion is provided below the pixel area.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A thermal infrared detector comprising:
a plurality of infrared ray absorption structures that are arranged in a matrix form having columns and rows;
a substrate that surrounds the plurality of infrared ray absorption structures, and comprises two opposing side surfaces extending in a direction of the rows and at least one side surface that is perpendicular to the two opposing side surfaces and extends in a direction of the columns;
a plurality of beam-shaped trench structures that are disposed between the columns of the plurality of infrared ray absorption structures, and extend in the direction of the rows to remain connected to the at least one side surface of the substrate even after a heat insulation hollowing processing, and support a pixel area;
a plurality of sensor elements disposed below the plurality of infrared ray absorption structures, and comprising a 0-degree polarization detection sensor element, a 45-degree polarization detection sensor element, a 135-degree polarization detection sensor element, and a 90-degree polarization detection sensor element that are bundled together, to form a plasmonic absorber between two adjacent beam-shaped trench structures among the plurality of beam-shaped trench structures;
an etching hole through which the plurality of sensor elements is hollowed out and thereby thermally insulated is provided on a periphery of a pixel area,
an opening portion is provided below the pixel area;
a first infrared ray absorption structure of the plurality of infrared ray absorption structures that comprises
a first column and a second column that are disposed in parallel with and spaced apart from each other, and perpendicular to a contact surface between the first infrared ray absorption structure and a first sensor element of the plurality of sensor elements, and
a first arch and a second arch that are disposed on an upper portion of the first sensor element to absorb infrared rays passing through the first sensor element and are respectively connected to the first column and the second column to form a curvature that allows a vertical distance between the first sensor element and the first infrared ray absorption structure to gradually decease in a first horizontal direction from a junction of the first column and the first arch of the first infrared ray absorption structure towards an end of the first arch of the first infrared ray absorption structure, and in a second horizontal direction from a junction of the second column and the second arch of the first infrared ray absorption structure towards an end of the second arch of the first infrared ray absorption structure.

2. The thermal infrared detector according to claim 1 , wherein the plurality of beam-shaped trench structures are provided directly below a wire for connecting the plurality of sensor elements to a peripheral circuit.

3. The thermal infrared detector according to claim 2 , wherein a thermal conductivity material that has a higher thermal conductivity than an SiO 2 film is provided in the interior of the plurality of beam-shaped trench structures.

4. The thermal infrared detector according to claim 2 , wherein the first sensor element comprises a front surface and a rear surface that oppose each other,
the first infrared ray absorption structure is disposed on the front surface of the first sensor element, and the thermal infrared detector further comprises an infrared ray absorbing film provided on the rear surface of the first sensor element and disposed to directly oppose a contact area between the first infrared ray absorption structure and the front surface of the first sensor element.

5. The thermal infrared detector according to claim 2 ,
comprising an infrared ray reflecting film provided on a side wall of each of the plurality of beam-shaped trench structures.

6. The thermal infrared detector according to claim 2 , comprising:
a heat insulation support leg formed on a separate plane that is different to a plane on which the first sensor element is formed; and
an infrared ray reflecting film provided on a side wall of each of the plurality of beam-shaped trench structures.

7. The thermal infrared detector according to claim 1 , wherein a thermal conductivity material that has a higher thermal conductivity than an SiO 2 film is provided in the interior of the plurality of beam-shaped trench structures.

8. The thermal infrared detector according to claim 7 , wherein the first sensor element comprises a front surface and a rear surface that oppose each other,
the first infrared ray absorption structure is disposed on the front surface of the first sensor element, and
the thermal infrared detector further comprises an infrared ray absorbing film provided on the rear surface of the first sensor element and disposed to directly oppose a contact area between the first infrared ray absorption structure and the front surface of the first sensor element.

9. The thermal infrared detector according to claim 7 ,
comprising an infrared ray reflecting film provided on a side wall of each of the plurality of beam-shaped trench structures.

10. The thermal infrared detector according to claim 7 , comprising:
a heat insulation support leg formed on a separate plane that is different to a plane on which the first sensor element is formed; and
an infrared ray reflecting film provided on a side wall of each of the plurality of beam-shaped trench structures.

11. The thermal infrared detector according to claim 1 , wherein the first sensor element comprises a front surface and a rear surface that oppose each other,
the first infrared ray absorption structure is disposed on the front surface of the first sensor element, and
the thermal infrared detector further comprises an infrared ray absorbing film provided on the rear surface of the first sensor element and disposed to directly oppose a contact area between the first infrared ray absorption structure and the front surface of the first sensor element.

12. The thermal infrared detector according to claim 1 ,
comprising an infrared ray reflecting film provided on a side wall of each of the plurality of beam-shaped trench structures.

13. The thermal infrared detector according to claim 1 , comprising:
a heat insulation support leg formed on a separate plane that is different to a plane on which the first sensor element is formed; and
an infrared ray reflecting film provided on a side wall of each of the plurality of beam-shaped trench structures.

14. The thermal infrared detector according to claim 13 , further comprising a plasmonic absorber or an infrared ray absorbing film provided on a rear surface of the first sensor element.

15. The thermal infrared detector according to claim 1 , wherein a detectable wavelength of the thermal infrared detector is in a range between 8 μm and 14 μm.

16. The thermal infrared detector according to claim 1 , wherein two immediately adjacent sensor elements of the plurality of sensor elements which are arranged to be adjacent to each other in the direction of the columns, share one of the plurality of beam-shaped trench structures that is disposed between the two immediately adjacent sensor elements.

17. The thermal infrared detector according to claim 1 , further comprising a first wire and a second wire that intersect each other and are disposed directly above the plurality of beam-shaped trench structures,
wherein the 0-degree polarization detection sensor element, the 45-degree polarization detection sensor element, the 135-degree polarization detec

Assignees

• Mitsubishi Electric Corp

Inventors

• Kobayashi Satoi
• Sugino Takaki
• Hara Takafumi
• Kawano Yuji

Classifications

• G01J5/10 Primary

  using electric radiation detectors · CPC title

• G01J5/20

  using resistors, thermistors or semiconductors sensitive to radiation, e.g. photoconductive devices · CPC title

• G01J5/06

  Arrangements for eliminating effects of disturbing radiation; Arrangements for compensating changes in sensitivity (for adjusting of solid angle of collected radiation G01J5/07; means for wavelength selection G01J5/0801) · CPC title

• G01J5/024

  Special manufacturing steps or sacrificial layers or layer structures · CPC title

• G01J5/59

  using polarisation; Details thereof · CPC title