Image Sensor Color Filter Layout to Prevent Optical Black Flare
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current image sensors face challenges in achieving improved sensitivity and performance due to issues such as coating striation and flare phenomena, particularly in the optical black region, which affect the overall image quality and reliability.
Innovation Solution
The image sensor design incorporates a substrate with a pixel region and an optical black region, featuring a first and second color filter array, where the second color filter array has filters transparent to specific rays, and a filtering layer on the optical black region to prevent coating striation and flare, with microlenses and a lens coating layer to enhance light concentration and blocking.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If color filters are coated on the optical black region, then sensitivity and performance are improved, but coating striation and flare phenomena occur
Solution Approach 1:
The optical black region is divided into multiple sub-regions (first optical black region and second optical black region) with different color filter configurations. The first optical black region has color filters coated on its entire surface, while the second optical black region has color filters coated only on specific areas, preventing coating striation and flare in critical regions while maintaining sensitivity enhancement benefits.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the optical black region are assigned different color filter coating characteristics. Specifically, the first optical black region receives full-surface color filter coating to improve sensitivity, while the second optical black region has selective area coating to prevent flare and coating striation, optimizing local optical properties for different functional requirements.
2Measurement precision
If color filters are coated on the entire optical black region, then sensitivity is improved, but flare phenomena occur
Solution Approach 1:
The optical black region is segmented into first and second optical black regions with different coating strategies. The second optical black region uses selective area coating rather than full-surface coating, which prevents light from reflecting and causing flare while the first optical black region uses full coating for sensitivity enhancement.
Solution Approach 2:
The color filter coating is applied with different coverage patterns in different regions. The second optical black region has color filters coated only on specific areas rather than the entire surface, creating local optical properties that prevent flare generation while the first optical black region has uniform coating for maximum sensitivity.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This design enhances the sensitivity and performance of the image sensor by preventing coating striation and flare phenomena, ensuring improved image quality and reliability by uniformly coating and attaching color filters and distributing light concentration evenly.
Implementation Method 1
Each of the pixels includes a photodiode. The photodiode serves to convert incident light into electrical signals.
Implementation Method 2
a plurality of microlenses on the plurality of color filters
Implementation Method 3
a first color filter array on the pixel region; and a second color filter array on the dummy pixel region
Data Source
AI summary
An image sensor includes: a substrate including a pixel region and an optical black region, the optical black region including a dummy pixel region adjacent to the pixel region; a first color filter array on the pixel region; and a second color filter array on the dummy pixel region, wherein the substrate has a first surface, each of the first color filter array and the second color filter array is on the first surface of the substrate, and the second color filter array includes: a first filter that is transparent to a first ray; and a second filter that is transparent to a second ray.