Localization of Dark Current Random Telegraph Signal sources in pinned photodiode CMOS Image Sensors

Clementine Durnez (1) , Vincent Goiffon (1) , Serena Rizzolo (1) , Pierre Magnan (1) , Cédric Virmontois (2) , Laurent Rubaldo (3)

1 DEOS - Département Electronique, Optronique et Signal
2 CNES - Centre National d'Études Spatiales [Toulouse]
3 SOFRADIR (Veurey-Voroize)

This work presents an analysis of Dark Current Random Telegraph Signal (DC-RTS) in CMOS Image Sensors (CIS). The objective is to provide new insight on RTS in modern CIS by determining the localization of DC-RTS centers and the oxide interfaces involved. It is shown that DC-RTS centers are located near the transfer gate. In particular, it is demonstrated that both gate oxide and Shallow Trench Isolation (STI) contribute to this parasitic dark current variation.

Mots clés: Random Telegraph Signal; CMOS image sensors; Pinned Photodiode; Dark current; RTS; RTN; Random Telegraph Noise; Transfer Gate; STI; Shallow Trench Isolation

Domaines: Traitement du signal et de l'image [eess.SP]

Clementine Durnez, Vincent Goiffon, Serena Rizzolo, Pierre Magnan, Cédric Virmontois, et al.. Localization of Dark Current Random Telegraph Signal sources in pinned photodiode CMOS Image Sensors. 2017 International Conference on Noise and Fluctuations (ICNF), Jun 2017, Vilnius, Lithuania. pp. 1-4, ⟨10.1109/ICNF.2017.7985959⟩. ⟨hal-01662424⟩