Area isolation type solid-state image pickup device for increasing the usage of the element formation surface of a semiconductor chip

• US 6,333,760 B1
• Filed: 03/06/1998
• Issued: 12/25/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 03/06/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Terui, Takashi, Sugiki, Tadashi
• Primary Examiner(s): Garber, Wendy R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Vu, Ngoc-Yen, VU, NGOC YEN T
• Application Number:
  US09/035,832
• Time in Patent Office: 1,390 Days
• Field of Search: H04/N.314, H04/N.718, H04/N.5225, 250/208.1, 250/215, 250/216, 257/414, 257/431, 257/432, 257/433, 340/937, 340/936, 340/933, 348/143, 348/148, 348/149, 348/207, 348/218, 348/272, 348/275, 348/294, 348/311, 348/315, 348/335, 348/340, 348/343, 348/344, 348/369, 348/373, 348/374
• US Class Current: 348/315
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2021/9563 and suppressing pattern images
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 21/956 Inspecting patterns on the surface of objects contactless testing of electronic circuits G01R31/308; testing currency G07D; manufacturing processes per se of semiconductor devices implementing a measuring step H01L22/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/54 Mounting of pick-up tubes, electronic image sensors, deviation or focusing coils
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/00 Circuitry of solid-state image sensors [SSIS]; Control thereof

Abstract

An area-isolation type solid-state image pickup device is such that an image pickup area is formed on an element formation surface of a semiconductor chip in a way to correspond to an optical image configuration of a subject, the semiconductor chip serving as an image pickup element, and an element drive circuit area and signal processing circuit area formed on a section other than the image pickup area. By doing so it is possible to fully utilize elements on an element formation surface of a semiconductor chip without ruining the element and hence to improve an efficiency with which a semiconductor device is manufactured.

Claims

1. An area isolation type solid-state image pickup device comprising:

a semiconductor chip serving as an image pickup element with an image pickup area formed on an element formation of surface the semiconductor chip to correspond to an optical image configuration of a subject, said image pickup area including a first image pickup area corresponding to the optical image of the subject, and a second image pickup area different from the first image pickup area;

an element drive circuit and processing section formed on a section other than the image pickup area, the processing section being formed to process a signal obtained from the image pickup area; and

means for switching an image picked-up state from the first image pickup area to the second image pickup area, when an obtained subject image is displaced from the first image pickup area, and for switching the image picked-up state from the second image pickup area to the first image pickup area, when the obtained subject image from the second image pickup area coincides with an initially set image configuration.

2. The area isolation type solid-state image pickup device according to claim 1, wherein a second optical system conducting an optical image to the second image pickup area is wider in angle than a first optical system conducting an optical image to the first image pickup area.

3. The area isolation type solid-state image pickup device according to claim 2, wherein a light path from the second optical system is to be conducted to the second image pickup area, the light path is conducted there from a path displaced from a site above the first image pickup area so as to prevent an interference of light at the first image pickup area.

4. An area isolation type solid-state image pickup device comprising:

a semiconductor chip serving as an image pickup element with an image pickup area formed on an element formation surface of the semiconductor chip to correspond to an optical image configuration of a subject, said image pickup area including a first image pickup area corresponding to the optical image of the subject, and a second image pickup area different from the first image pickup area;

an element drive circuit and processing section formed on a section of the image pickup device other than the image pickup area, the processing section being formed to process a signal obtained from the image pickup area; and

means for switching an image picked-up state from the first image pickup area to the second image pickup area, when an obtained subject image is displaced from the first image pickup area, and for switching the image picked-up state from the second image pickup area to the first image pickup area, when the subject image from the second image pickup area coincides with an initially set image configuration.

5. The area isolation type solid-state image pickup device according to claim 4, wherein a second optical system conducting an optical image to the second image pickup area is wider in angle than a first optical system conducting an optical image to the first image pickup area.

6. The area isolation type solid-state image pickup device according to claim 5, wherein, when a light path from the second optical system is to be conducted to the second image pickup area, the light path is conducted there from a path displaced from a site above the first image pickup area so as to prevent an interference of light at the first image pickup area.