18150372. STACKED CMOS IMAGE SENSOR simplified abstract (Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Ltd.)
Contents
STACKED CMOS IMAGE SENSOR
Organization Name
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Ltd.
Inventor(s)
Chi-Hsien Chung of New Taipei City (TW)
Tzu-Jui Wang of Fengshan City (TW)
Tzu-Hsuan Hsu of Kaohsiung City (TW)
Chen-Jong Wang of Hsin-Chu (TW)
Dun-Nian Yaung of Taipei City (TW)
STACKED CMOS IMAGE SENSOR - A simplified explanation of the abstract
This abstract first appeared for US patent application 18150372 titled 'STACKED CMOS IMAGE SENSOR
Simplified Explanation
The patent application is directed towards a stacked CMOS image sensor without a shallow trench isolation (STI) structure at the photodetector of the pixel sensor. By omitting the STI structure, the doped well surrounding the pixel sensor can have a lesser width, consuming less area of the photodetector and allowing for enhanced scaling down of the pixel sensor.
- Stacked CMOS image sensor design
- Pixel sensor spans multiple IC chips
- Devoid of STI structure at photodetector
- Doped well surrounding pixel sensor has lesser width
- Consumes less area of photodetector
- Allows for enhanced scaling down of pixel sensor
Potential Applications
- Digital cameras
- Smartphones
- Surveillance cameras
- Medical imaging devices
Problems Solved
- Reduced area consumption of photodetector
- Enhanced scaling down of pixel sensor
- Improved performance of image sensor
Benefits
- Higher resolution images
- Smaller form factor devices
- Improved image sensor performance
- Cost-effective manufacturing process
Original Abstract Submitted
Various embodiments of the present disclosure are directed towards a stacked complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor in which a pixel sensor spans multiple integrated circuit (IC) chips and is devoid of a shallow trench isolation (STI) structure at a photodetector of the pixel sensor. The photodetector and a first transistor form a first portion of the pixel sensor at a first IC chip. A plurality of second transistors forms a second portion of the pixel sensor at a second IC chip. By omitting the STI structure at the photodetector, a doped well surrounding and demarcating the pixel sensor may have a lesser width than it would otherwise have. Hence, the doped well may consume less area of the photodetector. This, in turn, allows enhanced scaling down of the pixel sensor.
