Image sensor pixels having separated charge storage regions
First Claim
1. An image sensor pixel, comprising:
- a first photosensitive region that stores a charge;
a second photosensitive region;
trunk circuitry that comprises a charge storage node, wherein the second photosensitive region is substantially surrounded by the trunk circuitry and the first photosensitive region; and
transistor circuitry that is configured to transfer the charge from the first photosensitive region to the storage node in the trunk circuitry through the second photosensitive region.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An image sensor may include pixel having nested photosensitive regions. A pixel with nested photosensitive regions may include an inner photosensitive region that has a rectangular light collecting area. The inner photosensitive region may be formed in a substrate and may be surrounded by an outer photosensitive region. The pixel with nested photosensitive regions may include trunk circuitry and transistor circuitry. Trunk circuitry may include a voltage supply source, a charge storage node, and readout transistors. Trunk circuitry may be located in close proximity to both the inner and outer photosensitive regions. Transistor circuitry may couple the inner photosensitive region, the outer photosensitive region, and trunk circuitry to one another. Microlenses may be formed over the nested photosensitive groups. Hybrid color filters having a single color filter region over the inner photosensitive region and a portion of the outer photosensitive region may also be used.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. An image sensor pixel, comprising:
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a first photosensitive region that stores a charge; a second photosensitive region; trunk circuitry that comprises a charge storage node, wherein the second photosensitive region is substantially surrounded by the trunk circuitry and the first photosensitive region; and transistor circuitry that is configured to transfer the charge from the first photosensitive region to the storage node in the trunk circuitry through the second photosensitive region. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. An image sensor pixel, comprising:
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an outer photosensitive region; an inner photosensitive region nested within the outer photosensitive region; an isolation structure interposed between the inner and outer photosensitive regions; and transistor circuitry formed over the isolation structure that has a first terminal coupled to the inner photosensitive region and a second terminal coupled to the outer photosensitive region.
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12. The image sensor pixel defined in 11, further comprising:
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a voltage supply line that receives a supply voltage; and an anti-blooming gate that couples the outer photosensitive region to the voltage supply line and that is configured to reset the outer photosensitive region to the supply voltage.
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13. The image sensor pixel defined in 11, further comprising:
a color filter formed over the outer photosensitive region and in the inner photosensitive region.
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14. The image sensor pixel defined in 13, wherein the color filter comprises:
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a first filtering region formed over the inner photosensitive region; and a second filtering region formed over the outer photosensitive region, wherein the first and second filtering regions transmit different respective spectrums of light.
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15. The image sensor pixel defined in 14, further comprising:
a microlens formed over the outer photosensitive region, wherein the outer photosensitive region has a higher sensitivity to light than the inner photosensitive region.
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16. An image sensor, comprising:
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a first image sensor pixel comprising; a first photodiode that has a first charge storage capacity; and a second photodiode that has a second charge storage capacity that is greater than the first charge storage capacity; a second image sensor pixel that is adjacent to the first image sensor pixel and that comprises trunk circuitry; and a transistor that couples the trunk circuitry in the second image sensor pixel to the second photodiode in the first image sensor pixel. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification