Embodiments of the present invention provide a detector comprising at least one detector element, the at least one detector element comprising: a photodiode element operable to generate charge carriers, the detector being configured to generate a signal indicative of a cumulative amount of charge carriers generated by the photodiode element during the integration period; a reset switch element configured to couple the photodiode element to a reset potential; at least one charge storage reservoir; and at least one gain control switch element configured to couple at least one said at least one charge storage reservoir to the photodiode element, wherein the detector is configured to perform a reset operation in which the reset switch element and at least one said at least one gain control switch element are closed in order to couple at least one said at least one charge storage reservoir and the photodiode element to the reset potential, the detector being configured to open at least one gain control switch element following a reset operation in dependence on whether at least one charge storage reservoir is to remain connected to the photodiode element during the integration period.

A pixel sensor array may include a plurality of pixel sensors configured to generate color information associated with incident light, and a time of flight (ToF) sensor circuit configured to generate distance information associated with the incident light. The color information and the distance information may be used to generate a three-dimensional (3D) ToF color image. The ToF sensor circuit may be included under a DTI structure surrounding the plurality of pixel sensors in a top view of the pixel sensor array.

An imaging device includes a stage holding a subject; a detector including a first pixel layer, an insulating layer, and a second pixel layer stacked on top of one another; an image formation optical member configured to form an image of imaging light transmitted through the subject; and an image processor configured to reconstruct an image of the subject based on a detection intensity of the imaging light. The first pixel layer includes first linear pixels having linear light receiving surfaces extending in a first direction, and the first linear pixels are arranged with equal intervals from one another in a direction orthogonal to the first direction. The second pixel layer includes second linear pixels having linear light receiving surfaces extending in a second direction, and the second linear pixels are arranged with equal intervals from one another in a direction orthogonal to the second direction.

An image sensor comprises a plurality of image sensing pixels arranged to form a sensor array. Each image sensing pixel of the plurality of image sensing pixels comprises a semiconductor photodetector connected to a photosensitive region that comprises a photon reception area configured to receive photons to facilitate image capture. For at least a particular image sensing pixel of the plurality of image sensing pixels, the length or the width of the photon reception area is smaller than about 80% of a pixel pitch measurement between the particular image sensing pixel and an adjacent image sensing pixel, which contributes to reduced volume of the photosensitive region and mitigated sensor noise. A space between the photosensitive region of the particular image sensing pixel and the photosensitive region of the adjacent image sensing pixel comprises at least one oxide layer and/or at least one metal layer.

Disclosed is an image sensor including first and second pixels adjacent along a first direction, a first micro lens disposed on the first and second pixels, a first pixel isolation structure disposed outside the first and second pixels and penetrating from a first surface of a substrate to a second surface of the substrate opposite the first surface of the substrate, and a first floating diffusion region disposed at the first pixel and the second pixel and adjacent to the first surface of the substrate. The first floating diffusion region may not overlap the first pixel isolation structure along a height direction perpendicular to the first and second surfaces of the substrate, and the first floating diffusion region between the first pixel and the second pixel may be disposed at a position corresponding to a center portion of the first micro lens along an optical axis direction.

A solid-state imaging device includes a substrate and a photoelectric conversion region. The substrate has a charge accumulation region. The photoelectric conversion region is provided on the substrate. The photoelectric conversion region is configured to generate signal charges to be accumulated in the charge accumulation region. The photoelectric conversion region comprises a material that is not transparent.

In some examples, techniques and architectures for fabricating an image sensor chip having a curved surface include placing a substrate on a first surface of an image sensor chip, wherein the first surface of the image sensor chip is opposite a second surface of the image sensor chip, and wherein the second surface of the image sensor chip includes light sensors to generate electrical signals in response to receiving light. Fabricating also includes modifying a volume of the substrate so as to impart forces on the image sensor chip to produce a curved image sensor chip.

An imaging device with low power consumption is provided. A pixel circuit has a configuration of detecting difference data between data of a reference frame and data of a target frame in a pixel, and a peripheral circuit has a configuration of efficiently converting the difference data by A/D conversion so as to obtain high compressibility. Difference data which is encoded by compression is written into a memory element and read sequentially. At this time, the frequency of a clock signal can be lowered in accordance with the amount of data. The read data is expanded and the expanded data is added to the reference frame to constitute an image.

A ranging pixel located in a peripheral region of a solid-state image sensor includes a microlens having a center axis that is shifted relative to a center axis of the ranging pixel, a first waveguide, and a second waveguide. The first waveguide is disposed on a side of the center axis of the ranging pixel that is in a direction opposite to a direction (projection shift direction) obtained by projecting a shift direction of the microlens onto a straight line connecting a center of the first waveguide and a center of the second waveguide, and the second waveguide is disposed on another side of the center axis of the ranging pixel that is in a direction identical to the projection shift direction of the microlens. In addition, at least one of the difference between the refractive indices of the core and the clad and the cross-sectional area of the core is greater in the first waveguide than in the second waveguide.

Provided is a semiconductor device with improved performance. The semiconductor device includes a photodiode having a charge storage layer (n-type semiconductor region) and a surface layer (p-type semiconductor region), and a transfer transistor having a gate electrode and a floating diffusion. The surface layer (p-type semiconductor region) of a second conductive type formed over the charge storage layer (n-type semiconductor region) of a first conductive type includes a first sub-region having a low impurity concentration, and a second sub-region having a high impurity concentration. The first sub-region is arranged closer to the floating diffusion than the second sub-region.