IP Library Granted Patent US 12,660,340
Granted Patent B2
US 12,660,340 · App. 18/117,201 · Granted Jun 16, 2026

Image sensor

Inventors: Haewook Jeong (Suwon-si, KR); Wonseok Lee (Suwon-si, KR); Minchul Lee (Suwon-si, KR); Masamichi Ito (Suwon-si, KR)
Assignee: SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD.
H10F39/18H10F39/199H10F39/80373
View Patent ↗
Loading inventors, assignments & file history…
Monitor This Case
Get email alerts when status or documents change.
Order Certified Copies
Most orders are placed with the USPTO same day — all within 24 business hours.
Order via The Patent Place →
Pre-filled with this patent's details
Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,660,340
App. No.
18/117,201
Granted
Jun 16, 2026
Kind
B2
Abstract

An image sensor is provided. The image sensor includes: a semiconductor substrate including a first surface and a second surface, which are opposite to each other; a photoelectric conversion region in the semiconductor substrate; a vertical transfer gate, which extends into the semiconductor substrate from the first surface toward the photoelectric conversion region; a floating diffusion region, which is provided in the semiconductor substrate, is spaced apart from the vertical transfer gate, and is an n-type impurity region; and a second impurity region, which is provided between the vertical transfer gate and the floating diffusion region and is a p-type impurity region.

Claims (24)

1 . An image sensor, comprising:

a semiconductor substrate comprising a first surface and a second surface, which are opposite to each other;

a photoelectric conversion region in the semiconductor substrate;

a vertical transfer gate, which extends into the semiconductor substrate from the first surface toward the photoelectric conversion region;

a floating diffusion region, which is provided in the semiconductor substrate, is spaced apart from the vertical transfer gate, and is an n-type impurity region;

a second impurity region, which is provided between the vertical transfer gate and the floating diffusion region and is a p-type impurity region;

a first contact metal on the vertical transfer gate; and

a second contact metal on the floating diffusion region,

wherein a distance along a horizontal direction from an edge of an upper portion of the vertical transfer gate to a center axis of the second contact metal is greater than ½ of a distance along the horizontal direction from a center axis of a lower portion of the vertical transfer gate to the edge of the upper portion of the vertical transfer gate.

2 . The image sensor of claim 1 , further comprising a third impurity region between the second impurity region and the floating diffusion region,

wherein a p-type impurity concentration of the third impurity region is lower than a p-type impurity concentration of the second impurity region, and

wherein a width of the second impurity region is greater than a width of the third impurity region.

3 . The image sensor of claim 1 , further comprising:

deep trench isolations, which extend in parallel and define a pixel region,

wherein a distance from a center axis of the first contact metal to the center axis of the second contact metal is greater than ⅓ of a pixel length that is a distance between the deep trench isolations.

4 . The image sensor of claim 1 , further comprising a first impurity region, which is provided between the photoelectric conversion region and the second impurity region, and is adjacent to the vertical transfer gate,

wherein a p-type impurity concentration of the first impurity region is higher than a p-type impurity concentration of the second impurity region, and

wherein a height of the second impurity region is higher than a height of the first impurity region.

5 . The image sensor of claim 1 , wherein, in a single pixel region, the lower portion of the vertical transfer gate comprises a plurality of gate structures.

6 . The image sensor of claim 5 , further comprising deep trench isolations, which extend in parallel and delimit pixel regions,

wherein a distance between two of the plurality of gate structures is shorter than ⅕ of a pixel length, which is a distance between the deep trench isolations.

7 . The image sensor of claim 1 , wherein the vertical transfer gate has an L shape in a plan view.

8 . The image sensor of claim 1 , wherein the vertical transfer gate has a ring shape in a plan view, and

wherein the floating diffusion region is enclosed by the ring-shaped vertical transfer gate.

Assignments (2)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Apr 5, 2023
From: ITO, MASAMICHI
To: SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD.
Reel/Frame 063229/0237 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Mar 3, 2023
From: JEONG, HAEWOOK; LEE, WONSEOK; LEE, MINCHUL
To: SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD.
Reel/Frame 062878/0833 →
Priority Claims (2)
KR 10-2022-0028272 · Mar 4, 2022 · national
KR 10-2022-0127722 · Oct 6, 2022 · national
Continuity (1)
Related Publication 20230282674A1 · Sep 7, 2023
References Cited (30)
US 9728565B2 · Possum et al. · 2017 [cited by applicant]
US 10319776B2 · Ma et al. · 2019 [cited by applicant]
US 10367029B2 · Lee · 2019 [cited by examiner]
US 20050167704A1 · Ezaki · 2005 [cited by examiner]
US 20090303371A1 · Watanabe · 2009 [cited by examiner]
US 20120199882A1 · Shin · 2012 [cited by examiner]
US 20190123093A1 · Watanabe et al. · 2019 [cited by applicant]
US 20190252428A1 · Ma et al. · 2019 [cited by applicant]
US 20210118925A1 · Zang · 2021 [cited by examiner]
US 20210183937A1 · Zang et al. · 2021 [cited by applicant]
US 20210305296A1 · Lee · 2021 [cited by examiner]
US 20220077215A1 · Horikoshi · 2022 [cited by examiner]
US 20220165763A1 · Kim · 2022 [cited by examiner]
US 20220406825A1 · Jin · 2022 [cited by examiner]
US 20230144105A1 · Choi · 2023 [cited by examiner]
US 20230253436A1 · Lim et al. · 2023 [cited by applicant]
US 20240006431A1 · Machida · 2024 [cited by examiner]
JP 2012164971A · 2012 [cited by examiner]
KR 1020120090352A · 2012 [cited by applicant]
KR 1020150105076A · 2015 [cited by applicant]
KR 1020160000046A · 2016 [cited by applicant]
KR 1020180076845A · 2018 [cited by applicant]
KR 1020190102767A · 2019 [cited by applicant]
KR 1020200117729A · 2020 [cited by applicant]
KR 1020230119577A · 2023 [cited by applicant]
WO WO2018163838A1 · 2018 [cited by examiner]
WO 2020137334A1 · 2020 [cited by applicant]
Jiaju Ma et al., “A Pump-Gate Jot Device With High Conversion Gain for a Quanta Image Sensor”, Journal of the Electron Devices Society, 2015, pp. 73-77. [cited by applicant]
Song Chen et al., “High Conversion-Gain Pinned-Photodiode Pump-Gate Pixels in 180-nm CMOS Process”, Journal of the Electron Devices Society, 2017, pp. 509-517. [cited by applicant]
Eric R. Fossum et al., “The Quanta Image Sensor: Every Photon Counts”, MDPI, Sensors 2016, pp. 1-25. [cited by applicant]