# US 12,120,447 B2 · Photoelectric conversion device, imaging system, moving body, and stackable semiconductor device > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,120,447 B2 - Document ID: US12120447B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 17/246,435 - Filed: 2021-04-30 - Published: 2021-08-19 - Granted: 2024-10-15 - Earliest claimed: 2018-08-31 - Assignees: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha - Applicants: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha - Inventors: Yu Arishima; Masahiro Kobayashi; Koichiro Iwata; Fumihiro Inui - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12120447B2 ## CPC - H04N 25/771: comprising storage means other than floating diffusion - H10F 39/803: {Pixels having integrated switching, control, storage or amplification elements} - H04N 25/59: by controlling the amount of charge storable in the pixel, e.g. modification of the charge conversion ratio of the floating node capacitance - H04N 25/77: Pixel circuitry, e.g. memories, A/D converters, pixel amplifiers, shared circuits or shared components - Y02E 10/50: Photovoltaic [PV] energy - H04N: PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION - H10F: INORGANIC SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES SENSITIVE TO INFRARED RADIATION, LIGHT, ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION OF SHORTER WAVELENGTH OR CORPUSCULAR RADIATION - Y02E: REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGY GENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION ## Abstract A unit circuit includes a photoelectric conversion element, an output transistor including an input node and configured to output a signal based on a charge from the photoelectric conversion element, a reset transistor, and a first transistor connected to the input node and configured to change a capacitance of the input node. A first control signal supplied to a gate electrode of the first transistor has at least three types of voltages. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A photoelectric conversion device comprising a unit circuit including: a photoelectric conversion element; an output transistor including an input node and configured to output a signal based on a charge from the photoelectric conversion element; a transfer transistor configured to transfer the charge from the photoelectric conversion element to the input node; a reset transistor configured to set a potential of the input node to a predetermined potential; and a first transistor including a gate electrode and a plurality of main electrodes, and configured to change a capacitance of the input node, the plurality of main electrodes including a first electrode and a second electrode, the first electrode being connected to the input node without passing through the second electrode, and the second electrode being connected to the transfer transistor through the first electrode, wherein a first control signal supplied to a gate electrode of the first transistor has at least a first voltage at which the first transistor turns ON, a second voltage at which the first transistor turns OFF, and a third voltage having a value between values of the first and second voltages, and wherein a second control signal supplied to a gate electrode of the reset transistor has at least a fifth voltage at which the reset transistor turns ON, a sixth voltage at which the reset transistor turns OFF, and a seventh voltage having a value between values of the fifth and sixth voltages. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The photoelectric conversion device according to claim 1, wherein the first transistor is connected between the input node and the reset transistor. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The photoelectric conversion device according to claim 1, configured to perform at least one of: a first operation in which the first control signal is at the first voltage and the input node has a first capacitance in reading the charge from the photoelectric conversion element; a second operation in which the first control signal is at the second voltage and the input node has a second capacitance smaller than the first capacitance in reading the charge from the photoelectric conversion element; and a third operation in which the first control signal is at the third voltage and the first transistor limits a variation in the potential of the first input node in reading the charge from the photoelectric conversion element. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The photoelectric conversion device according to claim 1, wherein the first control signal has a fourth voltage having a value between values of the third and first voltages. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The photoelectric conversion device according to claim 1, further comprising: a plurality of unit circuits each being the unit circuit; and an amplification unit configured to amplify a signal output from each of the plurality of unit circuits, wherein, in reading the charge from the photoelectric conversion element, a gain of the amplification unit in a case where the first control signal is at the second voltage is different from a gain of the amplification unit in a case where the first control signal is at the third voltage. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The photoelectric conversion device according to claim 1, further comprising: a plurality of unit circuits each being the unit circuit; a signal line to which a signal of each of the plurality of unit circuits is output; and a clipping circuit configured to limit an amplitude of the signal on the signal line, the clipping circuit including a transistor connected at an end to the signal line, wherein the amplitude of the signal line to be limited by the clipping circuit is greater than an amplitude of the input node to be limited by the first transistor. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The photoelectric conversion device according to claim 1, configured to further perform a fourth operation in which the first control signal is at the first voltage and the second control signal is at the seventh voltage in reading the charge from the photoelectric conversion element. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The photoelectric conversion device according to claim 1, further comprising a second transistor configured to control conduction between the first transistor and the reset transistor, and switch the capacitance of the input node, wherein a third control signal supplied to a gate electrode of the second transistor has at least an eighth voltage at which the second transistor turns ON, a ninth voltage at which the second transistor turns OFF, and a tenth voltage having a value between values of the eighth and ninth voltages. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The photoelectric conversion device according to claim 8, configured to selectively perform: a first operation in which the first control signal is at the first voltage, the third control signal is at the ninth voltage, and the input node has a first capacitance in reading the charge from the photoelectric conversion element; a second operation in which the first control signal is at the second voltage and the input node has a second capacitance smaller than the first capacitance in reading the charge from the photoelectric conversion element; a third operation in which the first control signal is at the third voltage, the third control signal is at the eighth voltage, and the first transistor limits a variation in the potential of the input node in reading the charge from the photoelectric conversion element; a fifth operation in which the first control signal is at the first voltage, the third control signal is at the eighth voltage, and the input node has a third capacitance greater than the first capacitance in reading the charge from the photoelectric conversion element; and a sixth operation in which the first control signal is at the first voltage, the third control signal is at the tenth voltage, and the second transistor limits the variation in the potential of the input node in reading the charge from the photoelectric conversion element. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The photoelectric conversion device according to claim 9, wherein the photoelectric conversion device is configured to perform a seventh operation in which the first control signal is at the first voltage, the second control signal is at the seventh voltage, and the third control signal is at the eighth voltage in reading the charge from the photoelectric conversion element. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) The photoelectric conversion device according to claim 1, configured to perform an eighth operation in which the first control signal is at the third voltage and the first transistor limits a variation in the potential of the input node in accumulating the charge from the photoelectric conversion element. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The photoelectric conversion device according to claim 1, wherein the first control signal has an eleventh voltage having a value between values of the first and third voltages, and wherein the photoelectric conversion device is configured to perform a ninth operation in which the first control signal is at the eleventh voltage and the first transistor limits a variation in the potential of the input node in accumulating the charge from the photoelectric conversion element. ### Claim 13 (depends on 1) An imaging system comprising: the photoelectric conversion device according to claim 1; and a signal processing unit configured to process a signal output from the photoelectric conversion device. ### Claim 14 (depends on 1) A moving body comprising: the photoelectric conversion device according to claim 1; a distance information acquisition unit configured to obtain distance information to an object using parallax information based on a signal from the photoelectric conversion device; and a control unit configured to control the moving body based on the distance information. ### Claim 15 A photoelectric conversion device comprising a unit circuit including: a photoelectric conversion element; an output transistor including an input node and configured to output a signal based on a charge from the photoelectric conversion element; a reset transistor configured to set a potential of the input node to a predetermined node; and a first transistor connected to the input node and configured to change a capacitance of the input node, wherein a control signal supplied to a gate electrode of the reset transistor has at least a voltage at which the reset transistor turns ON and a voltage at which the reset transistor turns OFF, wherein a control signal supplied to a gate electrode of the first transistor has at least a voltage at which the first transistor turns ON and a voltage at which the first transistor turns OFF, and wherein the voltage at which the reset transistor turns OFF is different from the voltage at which the first transistor turns OFF. ### Claim 16 (depends on 15) The photoelectric conversion device according to claim 15, wherein the first transistor is connected between the input node and the reset transistor. ### Claim 17 (depends on 15) An imaging system comprising: the photoelectric conversion device according to claim 15; and a signal processing unit configured to process a signal output from the photoelectric conversion device.