• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.12-15
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• 2022

In this study, we studied the effects of transfer gate on the photocurrent characteristics of gate/body-tied (GBT) metal-oxide semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET)-type photodetector. The GBT MOSFET-type photodetector has high sensitivity owing to the amplifying characteristic of the photocurrent generated by light. The transfer gate controls the flow of photocurrent by controlling the barrier to holes, thereby varying the sensitivity of the photodetector. The presented GBT MOSFET-type photodetector using a built-in transfer gate was designed and fabricated via a 0.18-㎛ standard complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) process. Using a laser diode, the photocurrent was measured according to the wavelength of the incident light by adjusting the voltage of the transfer gate. Variable sensitivity of the presented GBT MOSFET-type photodetector was experimentally confirmed by adjusting the transfer gate voltage in the range of 405 nm to 980 nm.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.284-289
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• 2014

In this paper, modeling of a gate/body-tied (GBT) PMOSFET photodetector with built-in transfer gate is performed. It can control the photocurrent with a high-sensitivity. The GBT photodetector is a hybrid device consisted of a MOSFET, a lateral BJT, and a vertical BJT. This device allows for amplifying the photocurrent gain by $10^3$ due to the GBT structure. However, the operating parameters of this photodetector, including its photocurrent and transfer characteristics, were not known because modeling has not yet been performed. The sophisticated model of GBT photodetector using a process simulator is not compatible with circuit simulator. For this reason, we have performed SPICE modeling of the photodetector with reduced complexity using Cadence's Spectre program. The proposed modeling has been demonstrated by measuring fabricated chip by using 0.35 im 2-poly 4-metal standard CMOS technology.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.1-5
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• 2022

In this paper, the photocurrent characteristics of gate/body-tied (GBT) metal-oxide semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET)-type photodetector with high sensitivity in the 408 nm - 941 nm range are presented. High sensitivity is important for photodetectors, which are used in several scientific and industrial applications. Owing to its inherent amplifying characteristics, the GBT MOSFET-type photodetector exhibits high sensitivity. The presented GBT MOSFET-type photodetector was designed and fabricated via a standard 0.18 ㎛ complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) process, and its characteristics were analyzed. The photodetector was analyzed with respect to its width to length (W/L) ratio, bias voltage, and incident-light wavelength. It was confirmed experimentally that the presented GBT MOSFET-type photodetector has over 100 times higher sensitivity than a PN-junction photodiode with the same area in the 408 nm - 941 nm range.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.61-65
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• 2021

In this study, we propose a 2500 frame per second (fps) high-speed binary complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor using a gate/body-tied (GBT) p-channel metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistor-type high-speed photodetector. The GBT photodetector generates a photocurrent that is several hundred times larger than that of a conventional N+/P-substrate photodetector. By implementing an additional binary operation for the GBT photodetector with such high-sensitivity characteristics, a high-speed operation of approximately 2500 fps was confirmed through the output image. The circuit for binary operation was designed with a comparator and 1-bit memory. Therefore, the proposed binary CMOS image sensor does not require an additional analog-to-digital converter (ADC). The proposed 2500 fps high-speed operation binary CMOS image sensor was fabricated and measured using standard CMOS process.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.114-118
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• 2021

In this study, the sensitivity of an active pixel sensor (APS) was adjusted by employing a gate/body-tied (GBT) p-channel metal-oxide semiconductor field-effect transistor (PMOSFET)-type photodetector with a transfer gate. A GBT PMOSFET-type photodetector can amplify the photocurrent generated by light. Consequently, APSs that incorporate GBT PMOSFET-type photodetectors are more sensitive than those APSs that are based on p-n junctions. In this study, a transfer gate was added to the conventional GBT PMOSFET-type photodetector. Such a photodetector can adjust the sensitivity of the APS by controlling the amount of charge transmitted from the drain to the floating diffusion node according to the voltage of the transfer gate. The results obtained from conducted simulations and measurements corroborate that, the sensitivity of an APS, which incorporates a GBT PMOSFET-type photodetector with a built-in transfer gate, can be adjusted according to the voltage of the transfer gate. Furthermore, the chip was fabricated by employing the standard 0.35 ㎛ complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) technology, and the variable sensitivity of the APS was thereby experimentally verified.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.24 no.5
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• pp.353-357
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• 2015

A new SPICE-compatible model for a gate/body-tied PMOSFET photodetector (GBT PD) with an overlapping control gate is presented. The proposed SPICE-compatible model of a GBT PD with an overlapping control gate makes it possible to control the photocurrent. Research into GBT PD modeling was proposed previously. However, the analysis and simulation of GBT PDs is not lacking. This SPICE model concurs with the measurement results, and it is simpler than previous models. The general GBT PD model is a hybrid device composed of a MOSFET, a lateral bipolar junction transistor (BJT), and a vertical BJT. Conventional SPICE models are based on complete depletion approximation, which is more applicable to reverse-biased p-n junctions; therefore, they are not appropriate for simulating circuits that are implemented with a GBT PD with an overlapping control gate. The GBT PD with an overlapping control gate can control the sensitivity of the photodetector. The proposed sensor is fabricated using a $0.35{\mu}m$ two-poly, four-metal standard complementary MOS (CMOS) process, and its characteristics are evaluated.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.23 no.5
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• pp.332-336
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• 2014

In this paper, we propose a complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) binary image sensor with a gate/body-tied (GBT) PMOSFET-type photodetector for high-speed operation. The GBT photodetector of an active pixel sensor (APS) consists of a floating gate ($n^+$-polysilicon) tied to the body (n-well) of the PMOSFET. The p-n junction photodiode that is used in a conventional APS has a good dynamic range but low photosensitivity. On the other hand, a high-gain GBT photodetector has a high level of photosensitivity but a narrow dynamic range. In addition, the pixel size of the GBT photodetector APS is less than that of the conventional photodiode APS because of its use of a PMOSFET-type photodetector, enabling increased image resolution. A CMOS binary image sensor can be designed with simple circuits, as a complex analog to digital converter (ADC) is not required for binary processing. Because of this feature, the binary image sensor has low power consumption and high speed, with the ability to switch back and forth between a binary mode and an analog mode. The proposed CMOS binary image sensor was simulated and designed using a standard CMOS $0.18{\mu}m$ process.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.151-155
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• 2022

In this paper, we present a highly-sensitive gate/body-tied (GBT) metal-oxide semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET)-type photodetector using multi-finger structure whose photocurrent increases in proportion to the number of fingers. The drain current that flows through a MOSFET using multi-finger structure is proportional to the number of fingers. This study intends to confirm that the photocurrent of a GBT MOSFET-type photodetector that uses the proposed multi-finger structure is larger than the photocurrent per unit area of the existing GBT MOSFET-type photodetectors. Analysis and measurement of a GBT MOSFET-type photodetector that utilizes a multi-finger structure confirmed that photocurrent increases in ratio to the number of fingers. In addition, the characteristics of the photocurrent in relation to the optical power were measured. In order to determine the influence of the incident the wavelength of light, the photocurrent was recorded as the incident the wavelength of light varied over a range of 405 to 980 nm. A highly-sensitive GBT MOSFET-type photodetector with multi-finger structure was designed and fabricated by using the Taiwan semiconductor manufacturing company (TSMC) complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) 0.18 um 1-poly 6-metal process and its characteristics have been measured.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.30 no.5
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• pp.295-299
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• 2021

In this study, we present a complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) binary image sensor. It can shoot an object rotating at a high-speed by using a gate/body-tied (GBT) p-channel metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor (PMOSFET)-type photodetector. The GBT PMOSFET-type photodetector amplifies the photocurrent generated by light. Therefore, it is more sensitive than a standard N+/P-substrate photodetector. A binary operation is installed in a GBT PMOSFET-type photodetector with high-sensitivity characteristics, and the high-speed operation is verified by the output image. The binary operations circuit comprise a comparator and memory of 1- bit. Thus, the binary CMOS image sensor does not require an additional analog-to-digital converter. The binary CMOS image sensor is manufactured using a standard CMOS process, and its high- speed operation is verified experimentally.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.82-88
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• 2020

In this paper, we propose a complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) binary image sensor with a gate/body-tied (GBT) p-channel metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor (PMOSFET)-type photodetector using a double-tail comparator for high-speed and low-power operations. The GBT photodetector is based on a PMOSFET tied with a floating gate (n+ polysilicon) and a body that amplifies the photocurrent generated by incident light. A double-tail comparator compares an input signal with a reference voltage and returns the output signal as either 0 or 1. The signal processing speed and power consumption of a double-tail comparator are superior over those of conventional comparator. Further, the use of a double-sampling circuit reduces the standard deviation of the output voltages. Therefore, the proposed CMOS binary image sensor using a double-tail comparator might have advantages, such as low power consumption and high signal processing speed. The proposed CMOS binary image sensor is designed and simulated using the standard 0.18 ㎛ CMOS process.