Imaging device

• US 10,462,396 B2
• Filed: 05/22/2018
• Issued: 10/29/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 06/01/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd. (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Shouho, Makoto, Yanagida, Masaaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Pasiewicz, Daniel M
• Application Number:
  US15/986,478
• Publication Number:
  US 20180352179A1
• Time in Patent Office: 525 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/571 involving a non-linear response
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/616 involving a correlated sampling function, e.g. correlated double sampling [CDS] or triple sampling
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/627 Detection or reduction of inverted contrast or eclipsing effects
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/75 Circuitry for providing, modifying or processing image signals from the pixel array

Abstract

An imaging device includes: a pixel; a signal line electrically connected to the pixel; and a first and second sample-and-hold circuits electrically connected to the signal line. The pixel includes: a photoelectric converter that generates signal charge; a charge accumulation region that accumulates the signal charge; a reset transistor that resets a voltage of the charge accumulation region; and an amplifier transistor that amplifies a signal voltage. The first sample-and-hold circuit includes: a first switch that is electrically connected to the signal line and has input-output characteristics in which an output is clipped at a clipping voltage with respect to an input exceeding the clipping voltage; and a first capacitor electrically connected to the signal line through the first switch. The second sample-and-hold circuit includes: a second switch electrically connected to the signal line; and a second capacitor electrically connected to the signal line through the second switch.

Claims

1. An imaging device comprising:

a pixel;

a signal line electrically connected to the pixel;

a first sample-and-hold circuit electrically connected to the signal line; and

a second sample-and-hold circuit electrically connected to the signal line, wherein

the pixel includes

a photoelectric converter that generates signal charge by photoelectric conversion,

a charge accumulation region that accumulates the signal charge,

a reset transistor that resets a voltage of the charge accumulation region to a reference voltage, and

an amplifier transistor that amplifies a signal voltage corresponding to an amount of the signal charge accumulated in the charge accumulation region to output to the signal line,

the first sample-and-hold circuit includes

a first switch that is electrically connected to the signal line and has input-output characteristics in which an output is linear with respect to an input up to a clipping voltage and the output is clipped at the clipping voltage with respect to the input exceeding the clipping voltage, and

a first capacitor electrically connected to the signal line through the first switch, and

the second sample-and-hold circuit includes

a second switch that is electrically connected to the signal line and has input-output characteristics in which an output is linear with respect to an input, and

a second capacitor electrically connected to the signal line through the second switch.

2. The imaging device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a control circuit, wherein

the pixel outputs a reference signal corresponding to the reference voltage and a pixel signal corresponding to the signal voltage, to the signal line, and

the control circuit switches the first switch on when the pixel outputs the reference signal, and switches the second switch on when the pixel outputs the pixel signal.

3. The imaging device according to claim 1, wherein

the first switch includes a first transistor having a first conductive type, and

the second switch includes a second transistor having the first conductive type, and a third transistor electrically connected with the second transistor in parallel and having a second conductive type different from the first conductive type.

4. The imaging device according to claim 1, wherein

the first switch includes an enhancement-type first transistor, and

the second switch includes a depletion-type second transistor.

5. The imaging device according to claim 4, wherein a conductive type of the first transistor is the same as a conductive type of the second transistor.

6. The imaging device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a differential amplifier electrically connected with the first sample-and-hold circuit and the second sample-and-hold circuit, wherein

the differential amplifier outputs a difference between a voltage held in the first capacitor and a voltage held in the second capacitor.

7. The imaging device according to claim 6, further comprising:

an AD converter circuit that converts an output of the differential amplifier from an analog signal into a digital signal.

8. The imaging device according to claim 7, wherein

the pixel outputs a pixel signal corresponding to the signal voltage, to the signal line, and

a value obtained by subtracting the clipping voltage from a maximum value of the pixel signal is larger than a maximum value of an input voltage range of the AD converter circuit.

9. The imaging device according to claim 1, wherein

the first transistor is a MOS transistor, and

when a power supply voltage is applied to a gate of the first transistor, the clipping voltage has a value obtained by subtracting a threshold voltage of the first transistor from the power supply voltage.

10. The imaging device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a step-down circuit that steps down a power supply voltage to generate a stepped-down voltage, wherein

the step-down circuit applies the stepped-down voltage to a gate of the first transistor, and

the first transistor is a MOS transistor.

11. The imaging device according to claim 10, wherein when the stepped-down voltage is applied to the gate of the first transistor, the clipping voltage has a value obtained by subtracting a threshold voltage of the first transistor from the stepped-down voltage.

12. The imaging device according to claim 3, wherein

the signal charge is a hole, and

the first transistor having the first conductive type is an n-type MOS transistor.

13. The imaging device according to claim 1, wherein

the photoelectric converter includes

a first electrode,

a second electrode facing the first electrode, and

a photoelectric conversion film that is located between the first electrode and the second electrode and generates the signal charge by the photoelectric conversion.

14. The imaging device according to claim 1, wherein the photoelectric converter is a photodiode.

15. The imaging device according to claim 14, wherein the pixel includes a transfer transistor between the photoelectric converter and the charge accumulation region.

16. The imaging device according to claim 1, wherein

the first switch has a first terminal and a second terminal, the first terminal being electrically connected to the signal line, the second terminal being electrically connected to the first capacitor, and

the second switch has a third terminal and a fourth terminal, the third terminal being electrically connected to the signal line, the fourth terminal being electrically connected to the second capacitor.