This invention provides a light-concentrating structure with photosensitivity enhancing effect, including the substrate, buried layer, first electrode layer, second electrode layer, dielectric layer and interconnection structure. The substrate is equipped with a housing space; the buried layer is arranged above the substrate with the housing space; the first electrode layer is arranged above the buried layer; the second electrode layer is arranged in the middle of the first electrode layer; the dielectric layer is arranged above the second electrode layer; the interconnection structure is arranged above the substrate and the first electrode layer surrounding the dielectric layer, which forms an opening and a light-concentrating recess groove.

Mercury cadmium telluride (MCT) dual band photodiode elements are described that include an n-type barrier region interposed between first and second p-type regions. The first p-type region is arranged to absorb different IR wavelengths to the second p-type region in order that the photodiode element can sense two IR bands. A portion of the second p-type region is type converted using ion-beam milling to produce a n-type region that interfaces with the second p-type region and the n-type barrier region.

An occupancy sensor covering a wide field in an integrated chip is disclosed. The occupancy sensor includes an array of grating coupled waveguide sensors wherein continuous wave (cw) signals monitor an ambient light field for dynamic changes on times scales of seconds, and high frequency signals map in three-dimensions of the space using time-of-flight (TOF) measurements, pixel level electronics that perform signal processing; array level electronics that perform additional signal processing; and communications and site level electronics that interface with actuators to respond to occupancy sensing.

An occupancy sensor covering a wide field in an integrated chip is disclosed. The occupancy sensor includes an array of grating coupled waveguide sensors wherein continuous wave (cw) signals monitor an ambient light field for dynamic changes on times scales of seconds, and high frequency signals map in three-dimensions of the space using time-of-flight (TOF) measurements, pixel level electronics that perform signal processing; array level electronics that perform additional signal processing; and communications and site level electronics that interface with actuators to respond to occupancy sensing.

A semiconductor light-receiving element, includes: a semiconductor substrate; a high-concentration layer of a first conductivity type formed on the semiconductor substrate; a low-concentration layer of the first conductivity type formed on the high-concentration layer of the first conductivity type and in contact with the high-concentration layer of the first conductivity type; a low-concentration layer of a second conductivity type configured to form a PN junction interface together with the low-concentration layer of the first conductivity type; and a high-concentration layer of the second conductivity type formed on the low-concentration layer of the second conductivity type and in contact with the low-concentration layer of the second conductivity type. The low-concentration layers have a carrier concentration of less than 1×10.sup.16/cm.sup.3. The high-concentration layers have a carrier concentration of 1×10.sup.17/cm.sup.3 or more. At least one of the low-concentration layers includes an absorption layer with a band gap that absorbs incident light.

A circuit, including: a photodetector including a first readout terminal and a second readout terminal different than the first readout terminal; a first readout circuit coupled with the first readout terminal and configured to output a first readout voltage; a second readout circuit coupled with the second readout terminal and configured to output a second readout voltage; and a common-mode analog-to-digital converter (ADC) including: a first input terminal coupled with a first voltage source; a second input terminal coupled with a common-mode generator, the common-mode generator configured to receive the first readout voltage and the second readout voltage, and to generate a common-mode voltage between the first and second readout voltages; and a first output terminal configured to output a first output signal corresponding to a magnitude of a current generated by the photodetector.

Photo-detection device (100) including a semiconductor substrate (110) made of Cd.sub.xHg.sub.1-xTe, with an N-doped region (120), a P-doped region (130), and a concentrated casing (150) only located in the P-doped region and having an average cadmium concentration greater than the average cadmium concentration in the N-doped region. According to the invention, the concentrated casing (150) has a cadmium concentration gradient, defining therein at least one intermediate gap zone (151) and at least one high gap zone (152), and the intermediate gap zone (151) is in direct physical contact with an electrical contact block (170). A significant reduction in the dark current and an optimal charge carrier collection are thus combined.

A device may include: a highly doped n.sup.+ Si region; an intrinsic silicon multiplication region disposed on at least a portion of the n.sup.+ Si region, the intrinsic silicon multiplication having a thickness of about 90-110 nm; a highly doped p.sup.− Si charge region disposed on at least part of the intrinsic silicon multiplication region, the p.sup.− Si charge region having a thickness of about 40-60 nm; and a p.sup.+ Ge absorption region disposed on at least a portion of the p.sup.− Si charge region; wherein the p.sup.+ Ge absorption region is doped across its entire thickness. The thickness of the n.sup.+ Si region may be about 100 nm and the thickness of the p.sup.− Si charge region may be about 50 nm. The p.sup.+ Ge absorption region may confine the electric field to the multiplication region and the charge region to achieve a temperature stability of 4.2 mV/°C.

Germanium-based sensors are disclosed herein. An exemplary germanium-based sensor includes a germanium photodiode and a junction field effect transistor (JFET) formed from a germanium layer disposed in a silicon substrate, in some embodiments, or on a silicon substrate, in some embodiments. A doped silicon layer, which can be formed by in-situ doping epitaxially grown silicon, is disposed between the germanium layer and the silicon substrate. In embodiments where the germanium layer is on the silicon substrate, the doped silicon layer is disposed between the germanium layer and an oxide layer. The JFET has a doped polysilicon gate, and in some embodiments, a gate diffusion region is disposed in the germanium layer under the doped polysilicon gate. In some embodiments, a pinned photodiode passivation layer is disposed in the germanium layer. In some embodiments, a pair of doped regions in the germanium layer is configured as an e-lens of the germanium-based sensor.

An image sensor device includes a semiconductor substrate, a radiation sensing member, a device layer, and a color filter layer. The semiconductor substrate has a photosensitive region and an isolation region surrounding the photosensitive region. The radiation sensing member is embedded in the photosensitive region of the semiconductor substrate. The radiation sensing member has a material different from a material of the semiconductor substrate, and an interface between the radiation sensing member and the isolation region of the semiconductor substrate includes a direct band gap material. The device layer is under the semiconductor substrate and the radiation sensing member. The color filter layer is over the radiation sensing member and the semiconductor substrate.