Methods and applications of non-planar imaging arrays

• US 8,372,726 B2
• Filed: 01/12/2010
• Issued: 02/12/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/07/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Medidata Solutions Incorporated (Dassault Systemes SA)
• Original Assignee: MC10, Inc.
• Inventors: de Graff, Bassel, Arora, William J., Callsen, Gilman, Ghaffari, Roozbeh
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Calvin
• Application Number:
  US12/686,076
• Publication Number:
  US 20100178722A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,127 Days
• Field of Search: 257/291, 257773-786, 438455-457
• US Class Current: 438/457
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/30 Treatment of semiconductor bodies using processes or apparatus not provided for in groups H01L21/20 - H01L21/26 manufacture of electrodes thereon H01L21/28
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/14618 Containers
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/14627 Microlenses
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/14632 Wafer-level processed structures
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/14645 Colour imagers
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/14683 Processes or apparatus peculiar to the manufacture or treatment of these devices or parts thereof not peculiar thereto H01L21/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/14687 Wafer level processing
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/00 Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/0002 Not covered by any one of groups H01L24/00, H01L24/00 and H01L2224/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/14 Integrated circuits
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/1433 Application-specific integrated circuit [ASIC]
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/19041 being a capacitor
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/19042 being an inductor
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/19043 being a resistor
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/3011 Impedance
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 1/0283 Stretchable printed circuits
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 2201/026 Nanotubes or nanowires
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 2201/09263 Meander
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 2201/10106 Light emitting diode [LED]

Abstract

System, devices and methods are presented that provide an imaging array fabrication process method, comprising fabricating an array of semiconductor imaging elements, interconnecting the elements with stretchable interconnections, and transfer printing the array with a pre-strained elastomeric stamp to a secondary non-planar surface.

Claims

1. An imaging array fabrication process method, comprising:

fabricating an array of semiconductor imaging islands from a single-crystal semiconductor substrate;

interconnecting the imaging islands with stretchable interconnections; and

disposing at least one micro-lens over at least a portion of at least one semiconductor imaging island of the array of one semiconductor imaging islands.

2. An imaging array fabrication process method, comprising:

fabricating an array of semiconductor imaging elements;

interconnecting the elements with stretchable interconnections;

disposing at least one micro-lens over at least a portion of at least one semiconductor imaging element of the array of one semiconductor imaging elements; and

transfer printing the array with a pre-strained elastomeric stamp to a secondary non-planar surface.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the semiconductor is a single-crystalline semiconductor.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the semiconductor is a non-single crystal silicon material used for photo-detection.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the material is amorphous silicon material.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the material is polycrystalline silicon material.

7. The method of claim 4, wherein the material is single-crystal silicon material.

8. The method of claim 4, wherein the material is conductive oxide material.

9. The method of claim 4, wherein the material is organic material.

10. The method of claim 4, wherein the material is carbon nano-tube material.

11. The method of claim 2, wherein the semiconductor imaging elements include at least one imaging pixel and support electronics for controlling and reading out the image from the at least one imaging pixel.

12. The method of claim 2, wherein light impinges the front-side of the semiconductor imaging elements.

13. The method of claim 2, wherein light impinges the back-side of the semiconductor imaging elements.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the semiconductor imaging elements have at least one of color filters and the at least one micro-lens transfer printed onto the backside of the semiconductor imaging elements.

15. The method of claim 2, wherein the surface is actuated through an applied force.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the actuated surface changes the curvature of the surface.

17. The method of claim 2, further comprising a curved imaging system imager packaging in which the non-planar surface in mounted.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the packaging is a chip scale packaging.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the packaging is a ball grid array.

20. The method of claim 2, wherein the of fabricating the array of semiconductor imaging elements is on at least one of a silicon-on-insulator (S01) and a rigid stack.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the fabrication structure is a layered order of Silicon, then Polymethyl Methacrylate (PMMA), then polyimide (PI), and then Silicon.

22. The method of claim 2, wherein the semiconductor imaging elements include color filters.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the color filters provide for color image capabilities.

24. The method of claim 2, wherein the at least one micro-lens provides for enhanced image quality.

25. The method of claim 2, wherein the semiconductor imaging elements are arranged as sensor islands.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the sensor islands are comprised of one pixel per sensor island.

27. The method of claim 25, wherein the sensor islands are comprised of more than one pixel per sensor island.

28. The method of claim 25, wherein the sensor islands include support electronics.

29. The method of claim 2, wherein the imaging array is shaped in symmetrical nonplanar geometry.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein the geometry is a paraboloid of revolution.

31. The method of claim 29, wherein the geometry is a hemisphere.

32. The method of claim 29, wherein the geometry is an ellipsoid.

33. The method of claim 2, wherein the imaging array is used to create a camera module.

34. The method of claim 33, wherein the camera module includes a lens barrel with at least one lens on a moveable mount, and a circuit for image processing and transmission.

35. The method of claim 33, wherein the camera module includes a lens.

36. The method of claim 35, wherein the lens is a plastic molded lens.

37. The method of claim 35, wherein the lens shape is changed via the application of a force.

38. The method of claim 37, wherein the force is a radial tension force.

39. The method of claim 37, wherein the force is a radial compression force.

40. The method of claim 2, wherein the imaging array is included in a security imager.

41. The method of claim 2, wherein the imaging array is included in an inspection Imager.

42. The method of claim 2, wherein the imaging array is included in a metrology imager.

43. The method of claim 2, wherein the imaging array is included in a space-based Imager.

44. The method of claim 2, wherein the imaging array is included in a manned vehicle.

45. The method of claim 2, wherein the imaging array is included in an unmanned vehicle.

46. The method of claim 2, wherein the imaging array is included in an endoscopic Imager.