Abstract: An x-y infrared CCD sensor employing the photoelectric effect as in a p-doped semiconductor substrate of silicon with an n.sup.+ pn diode as the infrared sensor element with a three layer structure in the vertical direction in the semiconductor substrate and a n-channel charge coupled device shift register. The device has a metal-oxide-semiconductor storage electrode directly adjacent to the n-region of the three layer structure. The device is manufactured by masked ion implantation with the doping density for the three layer sequence such that the doping density for the layer operating as the emitter is greater than the doping density for the layer operating as a base, which in turn is greater than the doping density for the layer operating as the collector.

Abstract: A semiconductor diode comprises an NPN or a PNP-three-layer structure of alternate conductivity type formed of three bordering semiconductor layers and having ohmic contacts. The diode is characterized in that in order to reduce the energy barrier, the central layer in the three-layer structure is selected in its thickness to be so thin that already without external electrode voltage applied to the ohmic contacts, with a given doping of the central layer, the entire central layer is depleted of free charge carriers.