Название: CMOS Image Sensors
Автор: Konstantin D Stefanov
Издательство: IOP Publishing
Год: 2022
Страниц: 301
Язык: английский
Формат: pdf (true), epub
Размер: 74.0 MB

This book explores the operating principles of complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) image sensors, their architecture, readout circuits, and characterisation techniques.

The book focusses on the pinned photodiode (4T) pixel and also describes the three transistor (3T) design and other pixel architectures. Device operation is explained throughout with the support of technology computer-aided design (TCAD) semiconductor simulations. Characterisation techniques of CMOS image sensors are discussed in detail, including the use of the photon transfer curve (PTC) for determining the many device parameters. Solved examples are included with the purpose of helping readers gain an understanding of the practical use of the formulas.

Image sensors are fascinating devices that straddle the boundary between semiconductor physics and electronic engineering. Nowadays, they are used in almost everything, come in bewildering varieties, and are mostly made with complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) technology, like the billions of other integrated circuits (IC) manufactured every year. And they look good! They are among the handful of IC types which can be easily seen through their transparent glass cover. To understand how they work, we need to know a fair bit of semiconductor physics, especially when dealing with high performance imagers designed for science applications. However, this is not always enough; there are a lot of electronic circuits inside a CMOS image sensor (CIS), and even the simple ones can show subtle behaviour and throw up surprises. Without claiming to cover everything, this book strives to cover both the semiconductor physics and the essential electronics found inside a CMOS image sensor.

The main audience includes physicists and engineers in image sensor characterisation and development.