Solid-State Image Sensing Device and Method for Driving the Same

• US 20080273105A1
• Filed: 07/11/2006
• Published: 11/06/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 12/26/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Collabo Innovations, Inc. (Wi-LAN Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Koga, Kazunari, Watanabe, Kenji, Tanaka, Shouzi, Muroshima, Takahiro, Miyagawa, Ryouhei
• Granted Patent: US 7,728,895 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/301
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/14603 Special geometry or disposition of pixel-elements, address-lines or gate-electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/14609 Pixel-elements with integrated switching, control, storage or amplification elements scanning details of imagers (circuitry of solid-state image sensors H04N25/00); circuitry of imagers H04N25/70
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/14641 Electronic components shared by two or more pixel-elements, e.g. one amplifier shared by two pixel elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/00 Circuitry of solid-state image sensors [SSIS]; Control thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/745 Circuitry for generating timing or clock signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/778 comprising amplifiers shared between a plurality of pixels, i.e. at least one part of the amplifier must be on the sensor array itself

Abstract

A solid-state image sensing device includes: a plurality of unit pixels 21 arranged in rows and columns each of which outputs a pixel signal according to incident light; and a plurality of floating diffusion portions 22 each of which receives the pixel signals. Each of the floating diffusion portions 22 is shared by two unit pixels 21 which are respectively arranged in adjacent rows and which are respectively adjacent columns.

Claims

1. A solid-state image sensing device comprising:

a plurality of unit pixels arranged in rows and columns each of which outputs a pixel signal according to incident light; and

a plurality of floating diffusion portions each of which receives the pixel signals,

wherein every two of the unit pixels share a corresponding one of the floating diffusion portions, the two unit pixels being respectively arranged in adjacent rows of adjacent columns.

2. The solid-state image sensing device of claim 1, wherein

each of the unit pixels includes:

a photoelectric conversion portion which converts the incident light to the pixel signal; and

a read-out transistor which is connected to the photoelectric conversion portion to read out the pixel signal, and

each of the floating diffusion portions is a drain region of the read-out transistor.

3. The solid-state image sensing device of claim 1, wherein

every two of the unit pixels includes a pixel amplifier transistor which reads out the pixel signals accumulated in the corresponding one of the floating diffusion portions, and

each of the floating diffusion portions is electrically connected to a corresponding one of the pixel amplifier transistors.

4. The solid-state image sensing device of claim 3, wherein

each of the floating diffusion portions is electrically connected to another one of the floating diffusion portions, said each of the floating diffusion portions and said another one of the floating diffusion portions being adjacent to each other in the row direction, and

each of pairs of the floating diffusion portions electrically connected with each other is electrically connected to a common one of the pixel amplifier transistors.

5. The solid-state image sensing device of claim 3, further comprising a plurality of vertical signal lines each of which is provided for each column and electrically connected to each of the floating diffusion portions via the corresponding one of the pixel amplifier transistors, wherein

each of the vertical signal lines receives the pixel signals of the unit pixels arranged in an even-numbered row of a corresponding one of the columns and the pixel signals of the unit pixels arranged in an odd-numbered row of one of the other columns adjacent to said corresponding one of the columns.

6. The solid-state image sensing device of claim 5, further comprising:

a signal processing section which successively reads out the pixel signals from the plurality of vertical signal lines and converts the pixel signals to an image sensing signal of one row; and

a horizontal scan circuit which outputs a horizontal drive signal to drive the signal processing section,

wherein the horizontal scan circuit outputs the horizontal drive signal which has different timings for a case where the signal processing section reads out the pixel signals of the unit pixels arranged in the even-numbered row and for a case where the signal processing section reads out the pixel signals of the unit pixels arranged in the odd-numbered row.

7. The solid-state image sensing device of claim 6, wherein

the horizontal scan circuit includes a plurality of shift register circuits and a selection circuit,

the selection circuit selects one of output signals of the plurality of shift register circuits and outputs the selected output signal as the horizontal drive signal, and

the shift register circuits generate the output signals being shifted from each other.

8. The solid-state image sensing device of claim 6, wherein

the horizontal scan circuit includes a shift register circuit which has a plurality of stages of flip-flops serially connected with each other, and

the stages of the flip-flops to which a signal is input are different for a case where the signal processing section reads out the pixel signals of the unit pixels arranged in the even-numbered row and for a case where the signal processing section reads out the pixel signals of the unit pixels arranged in the odd-numbered row.

9. The solid-state image sensing device of claim 8, wherein

the horizontal scan circuit includes a selection circuit which switches the stages of the flip-flops to which the signal is input.

10. The solid-state image sensing device of claim 9, further comprising a determination circuit which determines whether the pixel signals read out by the signal processing section are the pixel signals from the unit pixels arranged in the even-numbered row or the pixel signals from the unit pixels arranged in the odd-numbered row to drive the selection circuit.

11. The solid-state image sensing device of claim 10, further comprising a vertical scan circuit which outputs a vertical drive signal to bring the plurality of unit pixels into a selected state on a row-by-row basis,

wherein the determination circuit operates according to the vertical drive signal.

12. The solid-state image sensing device of claim 6, wherein

the horizontal scan circuit includes a shift register circuit which is driven by a shift register drive signal, and

the shift register circuit is driven by the shift register drive signal which has different timings for a case where the signal processing section reads out the pixel signals of the unit pixels arranged in the even-numbered row and for a case where the signal processing section reads out the pixel signals of the unit pixels arranged in the odd-numbered row.

14. The solid-state image sensing device of claim 7, further comprising a determination circuit which determines whether the pixel signals read out by the signal processing section are the pixel signals from the unit pixels arranged in the even-numbered row or the pixel signals from the unit pixels arranged in the odd-numbered row to drive the selection circuit.

13. A method for driving a solid-state image sensing device including:

a plurality of unit pixels arranged in rows and columns;

a plurality of floating diffusion portions each of which is shared by every two of the unit pixels,

the two unit pixels being respectively arranged in adjacent rows of adjacent columns;

a plurality of vertical signal lines each of which is provided for each column; and

a horizontal signal line which is connected to each of the vertical signal lines, the method comprising the steps of;

(a) generating an image sensing signal of a row, and

(b) generating an image sensing signal of another row adjacent to the row of step (a)

wherein step (a) includes

(a1) respectively transferring the pixel signals of the unit pixels arranged in the row of step (a) to corresponding each of the floating diffusion portions,

(a2) respectively outputting the pixel signals transferred to the floating diffusion portions to corresponding each of the vertical signal lines, and

(a3) successively reading out the pixel signals output to the vertical signal lines to the horizontal signal line, and

step (b) includes

(b1) respectively transferring the pixel signals of the unit pixels arranged in said another row to corresponding each of the floating diffusion portions,

(b2) respectively outputting the pixel signals transferred to the floating diffusion portions corresponding each of the vertical signal lines, and

(b3) successively reading out the pixel signals output to the vertical signal lines to the horizontal signal line,

wherein step (b3) includes initiating reading-out of the pixel signals from the vertical signal line which is different from the vertical signal line at which reading-out of the pixel signals to the horizontal signal line is initiated in step (a3).