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US 6,577,342 B1Granted
Image sensor with microlens material structure
AssigneeIntel Corporation
InventorNeil S. Wester
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An optical device including a semiconductor-based substrate having a photosensitive circuit including a photosensitive area a portion of which is covered by color filter array material, a contact area surrounding the photosensitive area, and a microlens material overlying the portion of the photosensitive area and a portion of a contact area.
Claims18
An optical device comprising:
- a semiconductor based substrate having a photosensitive circuit including a photosensitive element a portion of which is covered by a color filter array material;
- a non-photosensitive area surrounding the photosensitive circuit;
- and
- a microlens material overlying a portion of the photosensitive element and a portion of the non-photosensitive area, wherein the microlens material overlying a portion of the photosensitive element is separate from the microlens material overlying a portion of the non-photosensitive area.
1 more element
An imaging system comprising:
- an imaging sensor of an integrated circuit having a sensor portion with a plurality of photosensitive circuits providing sensor signals in response to incident light and control signals and a non-sensor portion, a microlens material overlying a portion of the sensor portion and a portion of the non-sensor portion, wherein the microlens material overlying a portion of the sensor portion is separate from the microlens material overlying a portion of the non-sensor portion;
- control circuitry configured to generate the control signals for controlling the imaging sensor;
- and
- signal processing circuitry for generating image data in response to the sensor signals.
1 more element
A method of forming a scratch protection layer comprising:
- depositing a microlens material over a photosensitive area of an integrated circuit chip and over a non-photosensitive area of the integrated circuit chip;
- and
- patterning the microlens material deposited such that the microlens material overlying a portion of the photosensitive area is separate from the microlens material overlying a portion of the non-photosensitive area.
An image sensor comprising:
- a photosensitive area including a plurality of photosensitive circuits;
- a non-photosensitive area surrounding the photosensitive area;
- a plurality of microlenses, each microlens positioned above a respective one of the photosensitive circuits;
- and
- at least one microlens material structure positioned above a portion of the non-photosensitive area, wherein the at least one microlens material structure positioned above the non-photosensitive area is separate from the plurality of microlenses positioned above the photosensitive circuits.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.