AD conversion method and semiconductor device for use in physical quantity distribution detection

A semiconductor device for use in physical quantity distribution detection comprising:

• an effective area including in a unit component:
• a charge generating portion which generates charge corresponding to an incident electromagnetic wave;
• and
• a unit signal generating portion which generates an analog unit signal in accordance with the charge generated by the charge generating portion;
• and
• a reference signal generating portion which generates a reference signal to convert the unit signal to digital data as a functional component to the unit signal to digital data;
• a comparing portion which compares the unit signal with the reference signal generated by the reference signal generating portion;
• and
• a counter portion which conducts a count process by a predetermined count clock in parallel with the comparison process in the comparing portion and holds a count value at a time when the comparison process in the comparing portion is finished,
• wherein on a surface onto which the electromagnetic wave of the individual charge generating portions enters in the effective area, any one of color filters of a color separation filter formed of a combination of color filters of multiple colors to acquire color information is disposed, and
• the reference signal generating portion has individual reference signal generating and outputting portions which generate and output the reference signal fewer than the number of color components of color filters in a repeat unit for color filter arrangement in a predetermined direction in accordance with a unit of readout and in a direction different from the predetermined direction in accordance with the unit of readout and by the number of the color filters in the repeat unit for color filter arrangement in the predetermined direction in accordance with the unit of readout for the unit signal,
• wherein the individual reference signals independently outputted from the reference signal generating and outputting portions are basically directly transmitted to the comparing portion corresponding to the color filters having a common color property in a predetermined direction through a common signal line.