# US 12,002,894 B2 · Photosensor > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,002,894 B2 - Document ID: US12002894B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 17/567,194 - Filed: 2022-01-03 - Published: 2022-04-21 - Granted: 2024-06-04 - Earliest claimed: 2019-07-05 - Assignees: Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd. - Applicants: Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd. - Inventors: Kotaro Hirose; Masahiro Adachi; Yoshiyuki Yamamoto; Shunsuke Fujii; Fuminori Mitsuhashi - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12002894B2 ## CPC - G01J 5/12: using thermoelectric elements, e.g. thermocouples - H10F 77/30: Coatings (arrangements for preventing damage to photovoltaic cells caused by corpuscular radiation H10F77/80) - G01J 5/0225: {Shape of the cavity itself or of elements contained in or suspended over the cavity} - H10F 77/20: Electrodes - H10F 77/60: Arrangements for cooling, heating, ventilating or compensating for temperature fluctuations - H10N 10/17: characterised by the structure or configuration of the cell or thermocouple forming the device - G01J 2005/123: {Thermoelectric array} - G01J: MEASUREMENT OF INTENSITY, VELOCITY, SPECTRAL CONTENT, POLARISATION, PHASE OR PULSE CHARACTERISTICS OF INFRARED, VISIBLE OR ULTRAVIOLET LIGHT; COLORIMETRY; RADIATION PYROMETRY (light sources F21, H01J, H01K, H05B; investigating properties of materials by optical means G01N) - H10F: INORGANIC SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES SENSITIVE TO INFRARED RADIATION, LIGHT, ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION OF SHORTER WAVELENGTH OR CORPUSCULAR RADIATION - H10N: ELECTRIC SOLID-STATE DEVICES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR ## Abstract A photosensor includes: a support; a thermoelectric conversion material section that is disposed on a first main surface of the support and that includes a plurality of first material layers each having an elongated shape, a plurality of second material layers each having electrical conductivity and an elongated shape, and an insulating film, the first material layers and the second material layers each being configured to convert thermal energy into electrical energy; a heat sink that is disposed on a second main surface of the support and along an outer edge of the support; a light-absorbing film that is disposed in a region surrounded by inner edges of the heat sink as viewed in a thickness direction of the support so as to form temperature differences on the first main surface of the support in longitudinal directions of the first material layers. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A photosensor comprising: a support; a thermoelectric conversion material section that is disposed on a first main surface of the support and that includes a plurality of first material layers each having an elongated shape and a plurality of second material layers each having electrical conductivity and an elongated shape, the first material layers and the second material layers each being configured to convert thermal energy into electrical energy; a heat sink that is disposed on a second main surface of the support and along an outer edge of the support; a light-absorbing film that is disposed in a region surrounded by inner edges of the heat sink as viewed in a thickness direction of the support so as to form temperature differences on the first main surface of the support in longitudinal directions of the first material layers, the light-absorbing film being configured to convert received light into thermal energy; a first electrode; and a second electrode spaced apart from the first electrode, wherein each first material layer includes a first region including a first end on one side in the corresponding longitudinal direction and a second region including a second end on the other side in the corresponding longitudinal direction, each second material layer includes a third region including a third end on one side in the corresponding longitudinal direction and a fourth region including a fourth end on the other side in the corresponding longitudinal direction, the first region and the second region are respectively connected to the third region and the fourth region, so that the first material layers and the second material layers are alternately connected to each other in series, the endmost first material layer is connected to the first electrode, and the endmost second material layer is connected to the second electrode, and the first region is disposed in a region between outer edges of the light-absorbing film and the inner edges of the heat sink as viewed in the thickness direction of the support. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The photosensor according to claim 1, wherein the first material layers are disposed in contact with the first main surface of the support, and the second material layers are disposed on the first main surface of the support or on part of the first material layers. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The photosensor according to claim 1, further comprising an insulating film disposed in contact with the support, wherein the second material layers are disposed on part of the insulating film and on part of the first material layers. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The photosensor according to claim 1, wherein, as viewed in the thickness direction of the support, the light-absorbing film includes a first corner defined by a first outer edge extending in a first direction and a second outer edge extending in a second direction intersecting the first direction, the second outer edge being connected to the first outer edge at a first vertex, the first corner protruding toward the outer edge of the support. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The photosensor according to claim 4, wherein the first region is disposed in a region between an extension line of the first outer edge extending away from the first outer edge across the first vertex and an extension line of the second outer edge extending away from the second outer edge across the first vertex. ### Claim 6 (depends on 4) The photosensor according to claim 4, wherein the first material layers each have a length of 10% or more and 120% or less of a distance from the first vertex to an inner edge of the heat sink at the shortest distance from the first vertex. ### Claim 7 (depends on 4) The photosensor according to claim 4, wherein the first corner has an angle of 90 degrees or less as viewed in the thickness direction of the support. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The photosensor according to claim 7, wherein the light-absorbing film has a plurality of the first corners, and the first corners each have an angle of 90 degrees or less as viewed in the thickness direction of the support. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The photosensor according to claim 1, wherein joints between the second regions and the fourth regions overlap the light-absorbing film as viewed in the thickness direction of the support, and a geometric shape defined by a virtual line connecting adjacent ones of the joints forms along the outer edges of the light-absorbing film as viewed in the thickness direction of the support. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The photosensor according to claim 1, wherein the first or second material layers or the first and second material layers are made of semiconductors. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) The photosensor according to claim 1, wherein the first material layers and the second material layers are made of semiconductors, and the second material layers have a conductivity type different from that of the first material layers and are configured to convert temperature differences between the third regions and the fourth regions into electrical energy. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The photosensor according to claim 1, wherein the first material layers are made of a semiconductor containing Si and Ge as base elements. ### Claim 13 (depends on 5) The photosensor according to claim 5, wherein the first material layers each have a length of 10% or more and 120% or less of a distance from the first vertex to an inner edge of the heat sink at the shortest distance from the first vertex. ### Claim 14 (depends on 5) The photosensor according to claim 5, wherein the first corner has an angle of 90 degrees or less as viewed in the thickness direction of the support. ### Claim 15 (depends on 6) The photosensor according to claim 6, wherein the first corner has an angle of 90 degrees or less as viewed in the thickness direction of the support. ### Claim 16 (depends on 2) The photosensor according to claim 2, wherein the first material layers and the second material layers are made of semiconductors, and the second material layers have a conductivity type different from that of the first material layers and are configured to convert temperature differences between the third regions and the fourth regions into electrical energy. ### Claim 17 (depends on 3) The photosensor according to claim 3, wherein the first material layers and the second material layers are made of semiconductors, and the second material layers have a conductivity type different from that of the first material layers and are configured to convert temperature differences between the third regions and the fourth regions into electrical energy. ### Claim 18 (depends on 4) The photosensor according to claim 4, wherein the first material layers and the second material layers are made of semiconductors, and the second material layers have a conductivity type different from that of the first material layers and are configured to convert temperature differences between the third regions and the fourth regions into electrical energy. ### Claim 19 (depends on 5) The photosensor according to claim 5, wherein the first material layers and the second material layers are made of semiconductors, and the second material layers have a conductivity type different from that of the first material layers and are configured to convert temperature differences between the third regions and the fourth regions into electrical energy. ### Claim 20 (depends on 6) The photosensor according to claim 6, wherein the first material layers and the second material layers are made of semiconductors, and the second material layers have a conductivity type different from that of the first material layers and are configured to convert temperature differences between the third regions and the fourth regions into electrical energy. ### Claim 21 (depends on 7) The photosensor according to claim 7, wherein the first material layers and the second material layers are made of semiconductors, and the second material layers have a conductivity type different from that of the first material layers and are configured to convert temperature differences between the third regions and the fourth regions into electrical energy. ### Claim 22 (depends on 8) The photosensor according to claim 8, wherein the first material layers and the second material layers are made of semiconductors, and the second material layers have a conductivity type different from that of the first material layers and are configured to convert temperature differences between the third regions and the fourth regions into electrical energy. ### Claim 23 (depends on 9) The photosensor according to claim 9, wherein the first material layers and the second material layers are made of semiconductors, and the second material layers have a conductivity type different from that of the first material layers and are configured to convert temperature differences between the third regions and the fourth regions into electrical energy.