A combination sensor may include a first infrared light sensor and a second infrared light sensor. The first infrared light sensor may be configured to sense light in a first wavelength within an infrared wavelength spectrum. The second infrared light sensor may be configured to sense light in a second wavelength that is different from the first wavelength within the infrared wavelength spectrum. The first infrared light sensor and the second infrared light sensor may be stacked in relation to each other.

Digital camera systems and methods are described that provide a color digital camera with direct luminance detection. The luminance signals are obtained directly from a broadband image sensor channel without interpolation of RGB data. The chrominance signals are obtained from one or more additional image sensor channels comprising red and/or blue color band detection capability. The red and blue signals are directly combined with the luminance image sensor channel signals. The digital camera generates and outputs an image in YCrCb color space by directly combining outputs of the broadband, red and blue sensors.

The system-on-chip camera comprises a semiconductor body (1) with an integrated circuit (40), a sensor substrate (2), sensor elements (3) arranged in the sensor substrate according to an array of pixels, a light sensor (4) in the sensor substrate apart from the sensor elements, and a lens or an array of lenses (15) on a surface of incidence (30). Filter elements (11, 12, 13), which may especially be interference filters for red, green or blue, are arranged between the sensor elements and the surface of incidence.

A photodiode, such as a linear mode avalanche photodiode can be made free of excess noise via having a superlattice multiplication region that allows only one electrical current carrier type, such as an electron or a hole, to accumulate enough kinetic energy to impact ionize when biased, where the layers are lattice matched. A photodiode can be constructed with i) a lattice matched pair of a first semiconductor alloy and a second semiconductor alloy in a superlattice multiplication region, ii) an absorber region, and iii) a semiconductor substrate. A detector with multiple photodiodes can be made with these construction layers in order to have a cutoff wavelength varied anywhere from 1.7 to 4.9 μm as well as a noise resulting from a dark current at a level such that an electromagnetic radiation signal with the desired minimum wavelength cutoff can be accurately sensed by the photodiode.

Methods and systems for image sensing are provided. In one example, an apparatus comprises a semiconductor substrate comprising a light incident surface to receive light, a first pinned photodiode, and a second pinned photodiode, the first pinned photodiode and the second pinned photodiode forming a stack structure in the semiconductor substrate along an axis perpendicular to the light incident surface, the stack structure enabling the first pinned photodiode and the second pinned photodiode to, respectively, convert a first component of the light and a second component of the light to first charge and second charge. The apparatus further comprises one or more capacitors formed in the semiconductor substrate and configured to generate a first voltage and a second voltage based on, respectively, the first charge and the second charge.

An image sensor comprises at least two vertically stacked photo-sensitive devices wherein each respective photo-sensitive device comprises a stack of a top electrode, a first charge transport layer and an active layer. Each respective stack generates electrical charges in response to a corresponding predefined range of wavelengths of light incident on the image sensor.

Each photo-sensitive device further comprises a second charge transport layer having a first portion, vertically aligned underneath the active layer, and a second portion, transfer region, protruding laterally to extend beyond the active layer. A dielectric layer separates the first portion from a bottom electrode providing a voltage for depleting the first portion, and the transfer region from a transfer gate providing a voltage for transferring the generated electrical charge to a floating electrical connection, shared by all stacked photo-sensitive devices.

The floating electrical connection couples to a read-out-circuitry.

Methods of fabricating multicolor, stacked detector devices and focal plane arrays are disclosed. In one embodiment, a method of fabricating a stacked multicolor device includes forming a first detector by depositing a first detector structure on a first detector substrate, and depositing a first ground plane on the first detector structure, wherein the first ground plane is transmissive to radiation in a predetermined spectral band. The method further includes bonding an optical carrier wafer to the first ground plane, removing the first detector substrate, and forming a second detector. The second detector is formed by depositing a second detector structure on a second detector substrate, and depositing a second ground plane on the second detector structure. The method further includes depositing a dielectric layer on one of the first detector structure and the second ground plane, bonding the first detector to the second detector, and removing the second detector substrate.

An integrated device, the device including: a first level including a first mono-crystal layer, the first mono-crystal layer including a plurality of single crystal transistors; an overlaying oxide on top of the first level; a second level including a second mono-crystal layer, the second level overlaying the oxide, where the second mono-crystal layer includes a plurality of first image sensors; and a third level overlaying the second level, where the third level includes a plurality of second image sensors, where the second level is bonded to the first level, where the bonded includes an oxide to oxide bond; and an isolation layer disposed between the second mono-crystal layer and the third level.

Digital camera systems and methods are described that provide a color digital camera with direct luminance detection. The luminance signals are obtained directly from a broadband image sensor channel without interpolation of RGB data. The chrominance signals are obtained from one or more additional image sensor channels comprising red and/or blue color band detection capability. The red and blue signals are directly combined with the luminance image sensor channel signals. The digital camera generates and outputs an image in YCrCb color space by directly combining outputs of the broadband, red and blue sensors.

Digital camera systems and methods are described that provide a color digital camera with direct luminance detection. The luminance signals are obtained directly from a broadband image sensor channel without interpolation of RGB data. The chrominance signals are obtained from one or more additional image sensor channels comprising red and/or blue color band detection capability. The red and blue signals are directly combined with the luminance image sensor channel signals. The digital camera generates and outputs an image in YCrCb color space by directly combining outputs of the broadband, red and blue sensors.