Image sensor including pixels having plural photoelectric converters configured to convert light of different wavelengths and imaging apparatus including the same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9748288-B2
Application number	US-201615013011-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 2, 2016
Priority date	Feb 16, 2015
Publication date	Aug 29, 2017
Grant date	Aug 29, 2017

Abstract

Provided are an image sensor and an imaging apparatus. The image sensor of a multi-layered sensor structure, the image sensor includes a plurality of sensing pixels, each of the plurality of sensing pixels including a micro lens configured to collect light, a first photoelectric converter configured to convert light of a first wavelength band into an electric signal, and a second photoelectric converter formed on a substrate configured to convert incident light into the electric signal, wherein a central axis of the second photoelectric converter is spaced apart from an optical axis of the micro lens.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An image sensor of a multi-layered sensor structure, the image sensor comprising:
a plurality of sensing pixels, each of the plurality of sensing pixels including,
a micro lens configured to collect light, the micro lens having an optical axis associated therewith,
a first photoelectric converter configured to convert the light of a first wavelength band into an electrical signal, and
a second photoelectric converter on a substrate, the second photoelectric converter configured to convert the light of one or more remaining wavelength bands outside the first wavelength band into the electrical signal, the second photoelectric converter having a central axis associated therewith such that the central axis of the second photoelectric converter associated with a first sensing pixel of the plurality of sensing pixels is spaced apart from the optical axis of the micro lens in a different direction from the central axis of the second photoelectric converter associated with a second sensing pixel of the plurality of sensing pixels.

2. The image sensor of claim 1 , wherein the first photoelectric converter includes an organic photodiode.

3. The image sensor of claim 1 , wherein the second photoelectric converter includes a silicon photodiode or a semiconductor compound photodiode.

4. The image sensor of claim 1 , further comprising:
a color filter configured to selectively transmit the light based on a wavelength of the light.

5. The image sensor of claim 1 , wherein,
the central axis of the second photoelectric converter in the first sensing pixel is spaced apart from the optical axis in a first direction, and
the central axis of the second photoelectric converter in the second sensing pixel is spaced apart from the optical axis in a second direction, the second direction being a different direction from the first direction.

6. The image sensor of claim 5 , wherein the first direction and the second direction are opposite to each other.

7. The image sensor of claim 5 , wherein
the first sensing pixel is configured to output a first electrical signal corresponding to the light of the first wavelength band and a second electrical signal corresponding to the light of a second wavelength band, and
the second sensing pixel is configured to output the first electrical signal corresponding to the light of the first wavelength band and a third electrical signal corresponding to the light of a third wavelength band.

8. The image sensor of claim 5 , further comprising:
a focus detector configured to perform a focus detecting operation based on a phase-difference between binocular parallax image signals output from the first sensing pixel and the second sensing pixel.

9. The image sensor of claim 1 , further comprising:
a storage node spaced apart from the second photoelectric converter on the substrate, the storage node configured to store the electrical signal from the first photoelectric converter.

10. The image sensor of claim 9 , wherein a central axis of the storage node is spaced apart from the optical axis in a direction opposite to a direction in which the second photoelectric converter is spaced apart from the optical axis.

11. The image sensor of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of sensing pixels comprises:
a third sensing pixel, and a fourth sensing pixel, each of the first to fourth sensing pixels including the second photoelectric converter therein such that the central axis of the second photoelectric converter is spaced apart from the optical axis in different directions in each of the first to fourth sensing pixels.

12. The image sensor of claim 11 , wherein the different directions are perpendicular to each other.

13. The image sensor of claim 1 , further comprising:
a wiring layer connected to the plurality of sensing pixels, wherein,
the first photoelectric converter, the second photoelectric converter, and the wiring layer are sequentially stacked under the micro lens.

14. The image sensor of claim 1 , further comprising:
a third photoelectric converter configured to convert the light of a third wavelength band into the electrical signal.

15. The image sensor of claim 1 , wherein the image sensor is a semiconductor chip.

16. An imaging apparatus comprising:
a lens configured to collect light reflected from a subject; and
an image sensor of a multi-layered sensor structure, the image sensor including a pixel array having a plurality of pixels, at least two of the plurality of pixels being focusing pixels, the focusing pixels include a first focusing pixel and a second focusing pixel each including,
a micro lens, the micro lens having an optical axis associated therewith,
a first photoelectric converter configured to convert light of a first wavelength band into an electrical signal, and
a second photoelectric converter including a first photoelectric conversion device spaced apart from an optical axis of the micro lens, the second photoelectric converter configured to convert light of a second wavelength band into the electrical signal, the second photoelectric converter having a central axis associated therewith such that the central axis of the second photoelectric converter associated with the first focusing pixel is spaced apart from the optical axis of the micro lens in a different direction from the central axis of the second photoelectric converter associated with the second focusing pixel.

17. An image sensor having a multi-layered structure, the image sensor comprising:
a plurality of sensing pixels, the plurality of sensing pixels including,
a micro lens configured to collect incident light, the micro lens having an optical axis associated therewith, and
a plurality of photoelectric converters sequentially stacked under the micro lens, the plurality of photoelectric converters configured to selectively convert different wavelength bands of the incident light into different electrical signals, and at least one of the plurality of photoelectric converters having one or more photoelectric conversion devices formed in a substrate, the one or more photoelectric conversion devices being spaced apart based on an optical axis of the micro lens such that a central axis of the one or more photoelectric conversion devices associated with a first one of the plurality of photoelectric converters is spaced apart from the optical axis of the micro lens in a different direction from a central axis of the one or more photoelectric conversion devices associated with a second one of the plurality of photoelectric converters.

18. The image sensor of claim 17 , further comprising:
a color filter configured to selectively transmit the incident light based on a wavelength of light.

19. The image sensor of claim 17 , further comprising:
a storage node configured to store the electrical signals from the plurality of the photoelectric converters.

20. The image sensor of claim 17 , further comprising:
a focus detector configured to perform a focus detecting operation based on a phase-difference between binocular parallax image signals output from the plurality of sensing pixels.

Assignees

• Baek Byung-Joon
• Samsung Electronics Co Ltd

Inventors

• Baek Byung-Joon

Classifications

• H04N23/55 Primary

  Optical parts specially adapted for electronic image sensors; Mounting thereof · CPC title

• H04N23/45

  for generating image signals from two or more image sensors being of different type or operating in different modes, e.g. with a CMOS sensor for moving images in combination with a charge-coupled device [CCD] for still images · CPC title

• H01L31/047

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H01L27/307

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H01L27/14636

  Electricity · mapped topic