Solid-state imaging device, driving method thereof, and camera

A solid-state imaging device comprising:

• photoelectric conversion units arrayed in rows and columns;
• vertical transfer units configured to read signal charges from said photoelectric conversion units and vertically transfer the signal charges;
• a horizontal transfer unit configured to horizontally transfer the signal charges received from said vertical transfer units;
• and
• a drive control unit configured to control the transfer of said vertical transfer units and the transfer of said horizontal transfer unit,
• wherein said vertical transfer units are allocated to at least one group including a plurality of vertical transfer units in said vertical transfer units, the at least one group is arranged in a horizontal direction,
• each of said plurality of vertical transfer units in a same group in the at least one group includes a first transfer unit and a second transfer unit, said first transfer unit receiving a driving voltage shared in the same group to vertically transfer signal charges, and said second transfer unit being provided for said first transfer unit to receive a driving voltage independent in the same group to transfer the signal charges from said first transfer unit to said horizontal transfer unit,
• said first transfer unit includes four or more charge transfer stages each of which is provided for a corresponding transfer electrode and serves as a barrier region or a well region depending on a driving voltage applied to the corresponding transfer electrode, the well region being separated from another well region by the barrier region and forming a packet that is signal charges to be transferred by the well region, and
• said drive control unit is configured to control the transfer of said vertical transfer units so that
• (i) after said first transfer unit in each of said plurality of vertical transfer units in the same group transfers a packet, said first transfer unit stops transfer of another packet in a time period during which the packet is horizontally transferred,
• (ii) said second transfer unit in each of said plurality of vertical transfer units in the same group transfers the packet to said horizontal transfer unit at a different timing different from a timing at which another second transfer unit in the same group transfers a different packet to said horizontal transfer unit,
• (iii) said horizontal transfer unit horizontally transfers the packet received at the different timing, in a horizontal transfer period different from another horizontal transfer period during which the different packet is horizontally transferred, and
• (iv) at least one charge transfer stage serving as the well region among said four or more charge transfer stages differs between the horizontal transfer period and the another horizontal transfer period.