Analysis of temporal noise in CMOS photodiode active pixel sensor

Temporal noise sets the fundamental limit on image sensor performance, especially under low illumination and in video applications. In a CCD image sensor, temporal noise is primarily due to the photodetector shot noise and the output amplifier thermal and 1/f noise. CMOS image sensors suffer from higher noise than CCDs due to the additional pixel and column amplifier transistor thermal and 1/f noise. Noise analysis is further complicated by the time-varying circuit models, the fact that the reset transistor operates in subthreshold during reset, and the nonlinearity of the charge to voltage conversion, which is becoming more pronounced as CMOS technology scales. The paper presents a detailed and rigorous analysis of temporal noise due to thermal and shot noise sources in CMOS active pixel sensor (APS) that takes into consideration these complicating factors. Performing time-domain analysis, instead of the more traditional frequency-domain analysis, we find that the reset noise power due to thermal noise is at most half of its commonly quoted kT/C value. This result is corroborated by several published experimental data including data presented in this paper. The lower reset noise, however, comes at the expense of image lag. We find that alternative reset methods such as overdriving the reset transistor gate or using a pMOS transistor can alleviate lag, but at the expense of doubling the reset noise power. We propose a new reset method that alleviates lag without increasing reset noise     

一种低压改进型MOS电荷泵电路的设计

针对使用标准CMOS技术实现的传统电荷泵输出电压较低的不足,文中提出将基本的电荷转移开关进行改进的MOS电荷泵,在泵送增益增加电路的基础上,通过在泵的输出级增加第3个控制信号来提高电荷泵的电压增益,以得到更高的输出电压,将其作为无线传感器的能量收集电路。仿真结果表明,该改进型电荷泵电路适合于低电压设备,并具有较高的泵送增益。其输出电压在同类电荷泵中最高,在1.5 V电源条件下,可高达8.5 V。     

High-sensitivity and no-crosstalk pixel technology for embeddedCMOS image sensor

A high-photosensitivity and no-crosstalk pixel technology has been developed for an embedded active-pixel CMOS image sensor, by using a 0.35-μm CMOS logic process. To increase the photosensitivity, we developed a deep p-well photodiode and an antireflective film, consisting of Si₃N₄ film, for the photodiode surface. To eliminate the high voltage required for the reset transistor in the pixel, we used a depletion-type transistor as the reset transistor. The reset transistor also operates as an overflow control gate, which enables antiblooming overflow when excess charge is generated in the photodiode by high-illumination conditions. To suppress pixel crosstalk caused by obliquely incident light, a double-metal photoshield was used, while crosstalk caused by electron diffusion in the substrate was suppressed by using the deep p-well photodiode. A 1/3-in 330-k-pixel active-pixel CMOS image sensor was fabricated using this technology. A sensitivity improvement of 110% for 550-nm incident light was obtained by using the deep p-well photodiode, while an improvement of 24% was obtained by using the antireflective film. The pixel crosstalk was suppressed to less than 1% throughout the range of visible light     

A high efficiency charge pump circuit for low power applications

A high efficiency charge pump circuit is designed and realized. The charge transfer switch is biased by the additional capacitor and transistor to eliminate the influence of the threshold voltage. Moreover, the bulk of the switch transistor is dynamically biased so that the threshold voltage gets lower when it is turned on during charge transfer and gets higher when it is turned off. As a result, the efficiency of the charge pump circuit can be improved. A test chip has been implemented in a 0.18 μm 3.3 V standard CMOS process. The measured output voltage of the eight-pumping-stage charge pump is 9.8 V with each pumping capacitor of 0.5 pF at an output current of 0.18 μA, when the clock frequency is 780 kHz and the supply voltage is 2 V. The charge pump and the clock driver consume a total current of 2.9 μA from the power supply. This circuit is suitable for low power applications.     

A single-chip CMOS APS camera with direct frame difference output

A complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) active pixel sensor (APS) camera chip with direct frame difference output is reported in this paper. The proposed APS cell circuit has in-pixel storage for previous frame image data so that the current frame image and the previous frame image can be read out simultaneously in differential mode. The signal swing of the pixel circuit is maximized for low supply voltage operation. The pixel circuit occupies 32.2×32.2 μm² of chip area with a fill factor of 33%. A 128×98 element prototype camera chip with an on-chip 8-bit analog-to-digital converter has been fabricated in a 0.5-μm double-poly double-metal CMOS process and successfully tested. The camera chip consumes 56 mW at 30 frames/s with 3.3 V power supply     

低照度CMOS图像传感器设计与实现

设计了一种基于电容反馈跨阻放大器型（Capacitive Trans-impedance Amplifier,CTIA）像元电路与双采样（Delta Double Sampling,DDS）的低照度CMOS图像传感器系统。采用CTIA像元电路提供稳定的光电二极管偏置电压以及高注入效率,完成在低照度情况下对微弱信号的读取;同时采用数字DDS结构,通过在片外实现像元积分信号与复位信号的量化结果在数字域的减法,达到抑制CMOS图像传感器中固定图案噪声的目的,进一步提高低照度CIS的成像质量。基于0.35 m标准CMOS工艺对此基于CTIA像元电路的CMOS图像传感器芯片进行流片,像元阵列为256256,像元尺寸为16 m16 m。测试结果表明该低照度CMOS图像传感器系统可探测到0.05 lx光照条件下的信号。     

A sensitivity and linearity improvement of a 100-dB dynamic range CMOS image sensor using a lateral overflow integration capacitor

In a CMOS image sensor featuring a lateral overflow integration capacitor in a pixel, which integrates the overflowed charges from a fully depleted photodiode during the same exposure, the sensitivity in nonsaturated signal and the linearity in saturated overflow signal have been improved by introducing a new pixel circuit and its operation. The floating diffusion capacitance of the CMOS image sensor is as small as that of a four transistors type CMOS image sensor because the lateral overflow integration capacitor is located next to the reset switch. A 1/3-inch VGA format (640/sup H//spl times/480/sup V/ pixels), 7.5/spl times/7.5 /spl mu/m/sup 2/ pixel color CMOS image sensor fabricated through 0.35-/spl mu/m two-poly three-metal CMOS process results in a 100 dB dynamic range characteristic, with improved sensitivity and linearity.     

包含交流耦合CTIA与数字CDS的CMOS图像传感器设计

设计了一种带隔直电容的交流耦合CTIA像元电路与数字相关双采样（DCDS）结构的CMOS图像传感器系统。在传统的CTIA像元电路中增加隔直电容,通过控制光电二极管的偏压,达到减小光电二极管暗电流的目的;同时采用片外数字CDS结构,通过在片外实现复位信号与像元积分信号的量化结果在数字域的减法,可以减小图像传感器像元的复位噪声和固定图案噪声（FPN）。基于0.35 m标准CMOS工艺对此CMOS图像传感器进行流片,像元阵列为256256,像元尺寸为16 m16 m。测试结果表明交流耦合CTIA像元电路可以将光电二极管的偏压控制在零偏点附近,此时其暗电流最小;采用了数字CDS结构后,图像传感器像元的时域噪声及固定图案噪声均有不同程度降低。     

CCD image sensor with compensated reset operation

A low voltage charge coupled device (CCD) image sensor has been developed by adjusting the electron potential barrier in the electron sensing structure. A charge injection to the gate dielectrics of a MOS transistor was utilized to optimize the electron potential level in the output structure. A DC bias generating circuit was added to the reset structure which sets reference voltage and holds the signal charge to be detected. The generated DC bias is added to the reset pulse to give an optimized voltage margin to the reset operation, and is controlled by adjustment of the threshold voltage of a MOS transistor in the circuit. By the pulse-type stress voltage applied to the gate, the electrons and holes were injected to the gate dielectrics, and the threshold voltage could be adjusted ranging from 0.2 V to 5.5 V, which is suitable for compensating the incomplete reset operation due to the process variation. The charges trapped in the silicon nitride lead to the positive and negative shift of the threshold voltage, and this phenomenon is explained by Poole–Frenkel conduction and Fowler–Nordheim conduction. A CCD image sensor with 492(H) × 510(V) pixels adopting this structure showed complete reset operation with the driving voltage of 3.0 V. The image taken with the image sensor utilizing this structure was not saturated to the illumination of 30 lux, that is, showed no image distortion.     

一种用于AMOLED驱动的多模式高效电荷泵

设计了一种用于AMOLED驱动芯片的多模式高效低纹波电荷泵。该电荷泵通过模式选择,使输出电压可配置,实现多模式功能。针对电压建立和模式切换过程中电荷损耗的问题,利用初始化电路和电压检测电路来保证电荷泵中电荷单向传输,同时利用衬底选择开关来解决电荷泵的体效应问题,提高了电压转换效率。采用双边对称的泵电路结构,减小了输出电压纹波。采用UMC 80 nm CMOS工艺进行仿真。结果表明,负载电流为4 mA时,输出电压为8.4~17 V,四种工作模式下电压转换效率均在90%以上,电压纹波均小于1 mV。     

Low voltage CCD image sensor with optimized reset operation

A charge coupled device (CCD) image sensor operating with 3.0 V-reset has been developed using a charge injection to the gate dielectrics of a MOS structure. A DC bias generating circuit was added to the reset structure, which sets reference voltage and holds the signal charge to be detected. The generated Dc bias is added to the reset pulse to give an optimized voltage margin to the reset operation, and is controlled by adjustment of the threshold voltage of a MOS transistor in the circuit. By the pulse-type stress voltage applied to the gate, the electrons and holes were injected to the gate dielectrics, and the threshold voltage could be adjusted ranging from 0.2 to 5.5 V, which is suitable for controlling the incomplete reset operation due to the process variation. The charges trapped in the silicon nitride lead to the positive and negative shift of the threshold voltage, and this phenomenon is explained by Poole-Frenkel conduction and Fowler-Nordheim conduction. A CCD image sensor with 492(H)×510(V) pixels adopting this structure showed complete reset operation with the driving voltage of 3.0 V. The image taken with the image sensor utilizing this structure was not saturated to the illumination of 30 lux, that is, showed no image distortion.     

A numerical analysis of a CMOS image sensor with a simplefixed-pattern-noise-reduction technology

A 1/3-in 640×480-pixel CMOS image sensor with a simple fixed-pattern noise-reduction technology with a five-transistor pixel circuit and a low input-voltage current-voltage (I-V) converter was previously developed. In this report, we show that the low-input-voltage I-V converter with a current-mirror circuit improves the amplification factor and linearity of the pixel circuit. In a five-transistor pixel circuit, the threshold voltage of the X-Y addressing transistor affects the amplitude and the level of the readout pulse. An analysis of the mechanism of the X-Y addressing transistor shows the basic concept behind the selection of the threshold voltage. An L-shaped readout gate for a pinned photodiode is compared with a straight readout gate, and is proved to be adequate for rapid charge transfer     

一个128×128CMOS快照模式焦平面读出电路设计

本文介绍了一个工作于快照模式的CMOS焦平面读出电路新结构——DCA(Direct-injection Charge Amplifier)结构.该结构像素电路仅用4个MOS管,采用特殊的版图设计并用PMOS管做复位管,既可保证像素内存储电容足够大,又可避免复位电压的阈值损失,从而提高了读出电路的电荷处理能力.由于像素电路非常简单,且该结构能有效消除列线寄生电容C_bus的影响,因此该结构非常适用于小像素、大规模的焦平面读出电路.采用DCA结构和1.2μm双硅双铝(DPDM-Double-Poly Double-Metal)标准CMOS工艺设计了一个128×128规模焦平面读出电路试验芯片,其像素尺寸为50×50μm²,电荷处理能力达11.2pC.本文详细介绍了该读出电路的体系结构、像素电路、探测器模型和工作时序,并给出了精确的HSPICE仿真结果和试验芯片测试结果.     

Total dose radiation effects of hybrid bulk/SOI CMOS active pixel with buried channel SOI source follower

A CMOS active pixel with pinned photodiode which used in-pixel buried-channel (BC) transistor has been reported, and the characteristic of CMOS image sensor with in-pixel buried-channel transistor was carried out. In this paper, we have a research on a hybrid bulk/silicon-on-insulator (SOI) CMOS active pixel with pinned photodiode which use buried channel SOI NMOS Source Flower (SF) by simulation. We study the basic characteristics of buried-channel SOI NMOS and the characteristics of CMOS active pixel optimized by using in-pixel buried-channel SOI transistor under radiation. The results show that, compared to the conventional active pixel with the standard surface-channel (SC) SOI NMOS SF, the dark random noise of the pixel which uses in-pixel buried channel SOI NMOS SF can be reduced under the radiation and the output swing is improved.     

Sub-1-V Supply Self-Adaptive CMOS Image Sensor Cell With 86-dB Dynamic Range

This letter presents a high dynamic range CMOS active pixel structure operating at a sub-1-V supply voltage, which is implemented using a standard 0.18-mum CMOS logic process. In order to improve the output voltage swing range and associated pixel dynamic range at a low supply voltage, a pMOS reset structure is incorporated into the pixel structure along with a photogate pixel structure based on the self-adaptive photosensing operation. At a low supply voltage of 0.9 V, the new pixel provides an output voltage swing range of 0.41 V and a high dynamic range of 86 dB, which is the highest among the reported pixel structures up to date operating at sub-1-V     

一种应用于CMOS图像传感器数字双采样ADC的PGA电路

提出了一种应用于CMOS图像传感器数字双采样模数转换器(ADC)的可编程增益放大器(PGA)电路。通过增加失调采样电容,采集PGA运放和电容失配引入的失调电压,在PGA复位阶段和放大阶段进行相关双采样和放大处理,通过数字双采样ADC将两个阶段存储电压量化,并在数字域做差,降低了PGA电路引入的固定模式噪声。采用0.18μm CMOS图像传感器专用工艺进行仿真,结果表明:在输入失调电压-30~30mV变化区间,提出的PGA的输出失调电压可以降低到1mV以下,相比传统PGA输出失调电压随输入失调电压单倍线性关系而言大大降低了列固定模式噪声。     

A CMOS Image Sensor With In-Pixel Buried-Channel Source Follower and Optimized Row Selector

This paper presents a CMOS imager sensor with pinned-photodiode 4T active pixels which use in-pixel buried-channel source followers (SFs) and optimized row selectors. The test sensor has been fabricated in a 0.18-mum CMOS process. The sensor characterization was carried out successfully, and the results show that, compared with a regular imager with the standard nMOS transistor surface-mode SF, the new pixel structure reduces dark random noise by 50% and improves the output swing by almost 100% without any conflicts to the signal readout operation of the pixels. Furthermore, the new pixel structure is able to drastically minimize in-pixel random-telegraph-signal noise.     

Low Voltage Active Pixel Sensor Based on PMOS Restoration Transistor

Presented was an optimum designed CMOS active pixel sensor. In this sensor, used is a PMOSFET substituting for the NMOSFET in traditional sensor as restoration transistor. Compared with traditional active pixel sensor under the same condition based on 0.25 μm CMOS technology, simulating results show that the new structure device has higher signal-to-noise ratio, wider output swing, wider dynamic range and faster readout speed.     

High speed SOI CMOS image sensor with pinned photodiode on handle wafer

We have fabricated SOI CMOS active pixel image sensor with pinned photodiode on handle wafer. The structure of one pixel is a four-transistor type active pixel image sensor, which consists of a reset and a source follower transistor on seed wafer, and is comprised of a photodiode, a transfer gate, and a floating diffusion on handle wafer. The photodiode could be optimized for better quantum efficiency and low dark currents because the process of a photodiode on handle wafer is independent of that of transistors on seed wafer. Most of the wavelengths are absorbed within the visible range, because the optimized photodiode is located on the handle wafer. The response time of SOI CMOS active pixel sensor was about 2 times faster than that of bulk CMOS active pixel image sensor.     

A low-voltage CMOS complementary active pixel sensor (CAPS)fabricated using a 0.25 μm CMOS technology

A low voltage rail-to-rail CMOS complementary active pixel sensor (CAPS) architecture is presented. Compared with a conventional active pixel sensor (APS), the CAPS surpasses the bottleneck of limited output swing at ultra-low supply voltage operation imposed by highly scaled technology, making it more scalable compared with other reported architectures. The CAPS has been implemented with a commercially available 0.25 μm CMOS technology. The pixel size of the fabricated CAPS is 12 μm × 10 μm with a fill factor of 30%. It is verified that the CAPS is capable to operate at a V_DD below 1 V with a reasonable output swing