Solid-state imaging device, method of manufacturing solid-state imaging device and electronic apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9450003-B2
Application number	US-201514609661-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 30, 2015
Priority date	Mar 31, 2010
Publication date	Sep 20, 2016
Grant date	Sep 20, 2016

Abstract

A solid-state imaging device including a photoelectric conversion element operable to generate electric charge according to the amount of incident light and to accumulate the electric charge in the inside thereof, an electric-charge holding region in which the electric charge generated through photoelectric conversion by the photoelectric conversion element is held until read out, and a transfer gate having a complete transfer path through which the electric charge accumulated in the photoelectric conversion element is completely transferred into the electric-charge holding region, and an intermediate transfer path through which the electric charge generated by the photoelectric conversion element during an exposure period and being in excess of a predetermined charge amount is transferred into the electric-charge holding region. The complete transfer path and the intermediate transfer path are formed in different regions.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An imaging device comprising:
a photoelectric conversion element in a substrate and configured to generate electric charge;
an electric-charge holding region configured to receive the electric charge from the photoelectric conversion element; and
a transfer gate having a transfer electrode, a first transfer path through which the electric charge accumulated in the photoelectric conversion element is transferred into the electric-charge holding region under control of the transfer electrode, and an second transfer path through which the electric charge generated by the photoelectric conversion element during an exposure period and being in excess of a predetermined charge amount is allowed to migrate into the electric-charge holding region regardless of control by the transfer electrode,
wherein,
the first transfer path and the second transfer path are in different regions,
the transfer gate electrode is over a surface of the substrate,
the electric-charge holding region is in the substrate under the transfer electrode, the surface of the substrate being between the transfer electrode and the electric charge holding region,
the first transfer path underlies the transfer electrode,
the second transfer path comprises a first impurity diffusion region of a first conductivity type and a second impurity diffusion region of a second conductivity type different from the first impurity type,
the first impurity diffusion region is between the photoelectric conversion element and the electric-charge holding region,
the second impurity diffusion region is between the photoelectric conversion element and the electric-charge holding region and between the first impurity diffusion region and the surface of the substrate, and
the second impurity diffusion region is a region distinct from the path formed in the first impurity diffusion region.

2. An imaging device comprising:
a photoelectric conversion element in a substrate;
an electric-charge holding region; and
a transfer gate,
wherein,
the transfer gate comprises first and second transfer paths, the first transfer path transferring charges from the photoelectric conversion element to the electric-charge holding region under control of the transfer electrode, the second transfer path allowing charge in excess of a predetermined amount to migrate from the photoelectric conversion element to the electric-charge holding region regardless of control by the transfer electrode, the second transfer path comprised of (a) a first impurity diffusion region between the photoelectric conversion element and the electric-charge holding region and (b) a second impurity diffusion region between the photoelectric conversion element and the electric-charge holding region and between the first impurity diffusion region and the surface of the substrate,
the second impurity diffusion region is distinct from the first impurity diffusion region,
the transfer electrode overlies the charge holding area and the first transfer path.

3. The imaging device according to claim 2 , wherein the first impurity diffusion region is a first conductivity type, and the second impurity diffusion region is a second conductivity type different from the first impurity type.

4. The imaging device according to claim 3 , wherein the first impurity diffusion region is configured such that a path is formed in the first impurity diffusion region for a transfer of the electric charge generated by the photoelectric conversion element during the exposure period and being in excess of the predetermined charge amount from the photoelectric conversion element and into the electric-charge holding region.

5. The imaging device according to claim 1 , wherein the transfer electrode overlies the first and second transfer paths.

6. The imaging device according to claim 2 , wherein the transfer electrode overlies the first and second transfer paths.

Assignees

• Sony Corp
• Sony Semiconductor Solutions Corp

Inventors

• Oike Yusuke
• Kawamura Takahiro
• Yamakawa Shinya
• Yamamura Ikuhiro
• Machida Takashi
• Sogoh Yasunori
• Saka Naoki

Classifications

• H04N25/65

  applied to reset noise, e.g. KTC noise related to CMOS structures by techniques other than CDS · CPC title

• H04N25/771

  comprising storage means other than floating diffusion · CPC title

• H04N25/53

  Control of the integration time · CPC title

• H10F39/18

  Complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor [CMOS] image sensors; Photodiode array image sensors · CPC title

• H10F39/014

  of CMOS image sensors · CPC title