A solid state imaging device capable of converting one-dimensional or two-dimensional optical information into an electrical signal is disclosed. A signal charge stored in each of a plurality of photo-electric converter elements, which is proportional to the amount of incident light, is read into a corresponding stage of a charge transfer device through a switching transistor under the control of a read control pulse. The read control pulse is applied through a clock line of the charge transfer device so that the clock line is used both for read-in and for transfer. In this manner, one picture element of the imaging device is constructed of one photo-cell and two transistors whereby a high integration density of the solid state imaging device is attained.
A solid state image sensor of the interline transfer type comprises a sensing and vertical transfer portion, a horizontal charge transfer portion and an output portion, having a large number of sensing element regions, each of which contains a photo-sensing area, a vertical charge transfer portion and a channel stopper area with substantially the same impurity concentration provided in areas surrounding the photo-sensing area and forming a transfer gate area are provided in the sensing and vertical transfer portions, and the arrangement of first and second transfer electrodes are provided for the sensing element regions such that the second transfer electrode is located completely on the first transfer electrode in the area of a part of the channel stopper region between two adjacent photo-sensing areas so that it is shielded from a part of the channel stopper region by the first transfer electrode so that the charge transfer efficiency in the vertical charge transfer portion is substantially improved.
A monolithically integrated circuit for relatively slow readout of a two-dimensional image sensor and transfer of separate signal charge packets and noise charge packets from the image sensor to a pair of charge transfer devices has first and second intermediate memories for respectively storing the signal and noise charge packets which are connected to clock pulse voltages for successively transferring the packets to the charge transfer devices. An output stage connected to the charge transfer devices contains a difference circuit for subtracting the noise signal from the total signal to generate a readout representing only the signal generated by incident radiation on the sensor.
In the disclosed element, a number of line shaped sensors each includes a plurality of P-N junctions each of which accumulates a charge corresponding to the amount of light incident thereon. A number of registers, one for each sensor, each defines addresses coupled to respective P-N junctions of the corresponding sensor to have the charge accumulated on each P-N junction transferred to the respective address in each register so that time sequential signals can be obtained from each register. A collection register has an address coupled to each of the other registers to store the time sequential output signals so that the stored signals can be read out sequentially. A gate arrangement connecting the output of the first registers to each address controls the time interval during which the time sequential signals of the first registers are transferred to the accumulating register.
A frame integrator for integrating each of the outputs of an array of radiation detectors whose output is obtained by the charge-injection-device technique. An array of analog integrators is connected using row and column interconnection techniques with an array of radiation detectors. The output from each radiation detector is sampled periodically and the detector returned to its unexposed condition to avoid saturation of the detector. The analog integrator associated with each detector integrates the sampled output of the detector to increase the effective sensitivity of the detector and to reduce the noise in the output. Each analog integrator consists of a precharged capacitor which is discharged through a field effect transistor in an amount proportional to the output of the associated radiation detector.
In a solid state image pickup apparatus employing a solid state image pickup device of the interline transfer type which comprises a plurality of photodetectors (1) arranged horizontally and vertically, transfer gate areas (6) each corresponding to each of the photodetectors (1), vertical transfer portions (2), a horizontal transfer portion (4) and an output portion (5), a reading pulse voltage taking a first high level (V.sub.R) is applied to each of two of the transfer gate areas (6) adjacent in the vertical direction alternately at every field period, so that signal charges are read out to the vertical transfer portions (2) from the photodetectors (1) corresponding to the transfer gate areas (6) to which the reading pulse voltage is applied, a voltage taking a second high level (V.sub.H) lower than the first high level (V.sub.R) is applied to the storage regions of the vertical transfer portions (2) during each horizontal video period, transfer pulse voltages taking the low level (V.sub.L) in turn at the respective different phases within each horizontal blanking period are applied to the vertical transfer portions (2), so that the signal charges read out to the vertical transfer portions (2) are transferred vertically, and the signal charges transferred vertically are further transferred horizontally through the horizontal transfer portion (4) to the output portion (5), thereby to produce an image pickup signal output.
