IP Library › Granted Patent US 12,191,331
Granted Patent B2
US 12,191,331 · App. 18/319,101 · Granted Jan 7, 2025

Image sensor

Inventors: Masato Fujita (Suwon-si, KR); Yunki Lee (Hwaseong-si, KR); Eunsub Shim (Hwaseong-si, KR); Kyungho Lee (Suwon-si, KR); Bumsuk Kim (Hwaseong-si, KR); Taehan Kim (Hwaseong-si, KR)
Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
H01L27/14612H01L27/14603H01L27/14621H01L27/14627H01L27/1463H01L27/14636H01L27/14645H04N25/59H04N25/704H04N25/709H04N25/772
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,191,331
App. No.
18/319,101
Granted
Jan 7, 2025
Kind
B2
Abstract

An image sensor includes a first photodiode group, a second photodiode group, a first transfer transistor group, a second transfer transistor group, a floating diffusion region of a substrate in which electric charges generated in the first photodiode group are stored, and a power supply node for applying a power supply voltage to the second photodiode group. A barrier voltage is applied to at least one transfer transistor of the second transfer transistor group. The power supply voltage allows electric charges, generated in the second photodiode group, to migrate to the power supply node, and the barrier voltage forms a potential barrier between the second photodiode group and the floating diffusion region.

Claims (17)

1. An image sensor comprising:

a pixel array including a normal pixel group and an autofocusing pixel group, the autofocusing pixel group including unit pixels sharing a single microlens, and a device isolation layer electrically isolating the unit pixels from each other, and

a drain terminal connected to a drain photodiode, wherein

the unit pixels included in the autofocusing pixel group includes first unit pixels and second unit pixels,

each of the first unit pixels includes an autofocusing photodiode and each of the second unit pixels includes the drain photodiode,

the autofocusing photodiode is configured to generate electric charges that migrate to a floating diffusion region of a substrate,

the drain photodiode is configured to generate electric charges that discharge to the drain terminal, and

the pixel array having either one of a red-green-green-blue (RGGB) pattern and a red-green-blue-white (RGBW) pattern; and

a controller configured to generate an image based on a signal generated from the normal pixel group and to provide an autofocusing function based on a signal generated from the autofocusing pixel group.

2. The image sensor of claim 1 , wherein

the pixel array has the RGGB pattern, and

at least one of the unit pixels of the autofocusing pixel group includes a green color filter among the green color filter, a blue color filter, and a red color filter.

3. The image sensor of claim 2 , wherein at least two unit pixels among the unit pixels of the autofocusing pixel group have different color filters to each other.

4. The image sensor of claim 1 , wherein when

the pixel array has the RGBW pattern, and

at least one of the unit pixels of the autofocusing pixel group includes a white color filter among a green color filter, a blue color filter, a red color filter, and the white color filter.

5. The image sensor of claim 4 , wherein at least two unit pixels among the unit pixels of the autofocusing pixel group have different color filters to each other.

Priority Claims (1)
KR 10-2019-0160516 · Dec 5, 2019 · national
Continuity (2)
Continuation 16996047 · Aug 18, 2020
Related Publication 20230290794A1 · Sep 14, 2023
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