An image sensor includes a substrate, a global shutter component, a ground doped region, and a light-shielding layer. The substrate at least has a pixel array region and a border region adjacent to each other. The global shutter component is located on the pixel array region, and the global shutter component includes a storage node. The ground doped region is located on the border region. The light-shielding layer is located on the pixel array region and the border region and is electrically connected to the ground doped region. The light-shielding layer includes a first light-shielding layer and a second light-shielding layer. The first light-shielding layer is located on the pixel array region and covers the storage node, and the second light-shielding layer is located on the border region and surrounds the global shutter component. A manufacturing method of an image sensor is also provided.

An image sensor structure including an image stack disposed over a device stack. The image stack includes a plurality of light detectors. A first optical filter stack is disposed over the image stack. The first optical filter stack includes a light guide layer. Light pipe cavities are disposed in the light guide layer. Each light pipe cavity is associated with a light detector. Each light pipe cavity has an aspect ratio that is greater than about 2.5 to about 1. A nanowell layer is disposed over the first optical filter stack. Nanowells are disposed in the nanowell layer. Each nanowell is associated with a light detector.

The present technology relates to an imaging element and an electronic apparatus that can suppress color mixture. The imaging element includes a first photoelectric converter that generates a charge corresponding to an amount of light, a second photoelectric converter that has a smaller light-receiving area than the first photoelectric converter, and a light-blocking wall provided between adjacent pixels. The light-blocking wall is provided in a shape having a spaced-apart region. The region is a region where light-blocking walls intersect in a case where the light-blocking walls are provided. The light-blocking wall is provided on each side of the first photoelectric converter, one end of the light-blocking wall serves as a region, and the other end is connected to another light-blocking wall. The present technology can be applied to an imaging element that acquires an image having an expanded dynamic range by using large pixels and small pixels.

Improvement of pixel characteristics is achieved. A light detecting device includes a semiconductor layer and first and second separation areas disposed in the semiconductor layer. The first separation area includes an insulating film that fills a first dug part extending in a thickness direction of the semiconductor layer and of which a refractive index is lower than that of the semiconductor layer, and the second separation area includes a conductive film filling a second dug part extending in the thickness direction of the semiconductor layer.

An electrode controls transmittance of a blocking layer over a photodiode of a pixel sensor (e.g., a photodiode of a small pixel detector) by changing oxidation of a metal material included in the blocking layer. By using the electrode to adjust transmittance of the blocking layer, pixel sensors for different uses and/or products may be produced using a single manufacturing process. As a result, power and processing resources are conserved that otherwise would have been expended in switching manufacturing processes. Additionally, production time is decreased (e.g., by eliminating downtime that would otherwise have been used to reconfigure fabrication machines.

Provided is a solid-state image capturing apparatus that can, between an image height center and positions where the image height becomes higher, align the impact of incident light with respect to light-blocking films. The solid-state image capturing apparatus is provided with a semiconductor substrate in which multiple pixels are disposed in a matrix. Each of the multiple pixels is provided with a photoelectric conversion unit that generates charge according to photoelectric conversion based on light incident on a light-receiving surface of the semiconductor substrate, a charge accumulating unit that accumulates the charge generated by the photoelectric conversion unit, a transfer transistor that transfers charge from the photoelectric conversion unit to the charge accumulating unit and has a vertical gate electrode that reaches the photoelectric conversion unit, and a light-blocking section that is formed by a trench disposed within a layer between the light-receiving surface and the charge accumulating unit and blocks light that is incident via the light-receiving surface from being incident on the charge accumulating unit. An amount of cover by the light-blocking section with respect to the charge accumulating unit is corrected according to an image height of a position where the pixel is disposed.

An imaging device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes: a semiconductor substrate having a first surface and a second surface opposed to each other, the semiconductor substrate including a plurality of pixels disposed in a matrix, and a plurality of photoelectric converters that each generates, through photoelectric conversion, electric charge corresponding to an amount of received light for each of the pixels; a plurality of color filters provided on a side of the first surface in respective ones of the plurality of pixels; a plurality of condensing lenses provided on a light incident side of the plurality of color filters in the respective ones of the plurality of pixels; and a separation wall provided between the plurality of color filters adjacent to each other on the side of the first surface, the separation wall having a line width on the light incident side narrower than the line width of the separation wall on the side of the first surface.

An image sensor includes: a first substrate including: a first side, a second side, a pixel array region, and an edge region; and a micro lens array on the second side, which includes micro lenses. Each of the micro lenses includes a first lens layer and a second lens layer on the first lens layer. A second mean curvature radius of the second lens layer is smaller than a first mean curvature radius of the first lens layer. A first eccentric degree of the second lens layer on an edge of the pixel array region is greater than a second eccentric degree of the second lens layer at a center of the pixel array region.

Light detection devices and related methods are provided. The devices may comprise a reaction structure for containing a reaction solution with a relatively high or low pH and a plurality of reaction sites that generate light emissions. The devices may comprise a device base comprising a plurality of light sensors, device circuitry coupled to the light sensors, and a plurality of light guides that block excitation light but permit the light emissions to pass to a light sensor. The device base may also include a shield layer extending about each light guide between each light guide and the device circuitry, and a protection layer that is chemically inert with respect to the reaction solution extending about each light guide between each light guide and the shield layer. The protection layer prevents reaction solution that passes through the reaction structure and the light guide from interacting with the device circuitry.

An image sensor including a plurality of avalanche photodiodes formed inside and on top of a semiconductor substrate of a first conductivity type having a front side and a back side, wherein: trenches vertically extend in the substrate from its front side to its back side, the trenches having, in top view, the shape of a continuous grid laterally delimiting a plurality of substrate islands, each island defining a pixel including a single individually-controllable avalanche photodiode, and including a doped area of collection of an avalanche signal of the pixel photodiode the lateral walls of the trenches are coated with a first semiconductor layer having a conductivity type opposite to that of the collection area, and a conductive region extends in the trenches, the conductive region being in contact with the surface of the first semiconductor layer opposite to the substrate.