Abstract: A radiation image-pickup device includes: a plurality of pixels configured to generate signal charge based on radiation; and a field effect transistor used to read out the signal charge from the plurality of pixels. The transistor includes a first silicon oxide film, a semiconductor layer, and a second silicon oxide film laminated in order from a substrate side, the semiconductor layer including an active layer, and a first gate electrode disposed to face the semiconductor layer, with the first or the second silicon oxide film interposed therebetween, and the first or the second silicon oxide film or both include an impurity element.

Abstract: Disclosed herein is a photoelectric conversion element including: a first semiconductor layer of a first conductivity type provided above a substrate; a second semiconductor layer of a second conductivity type provided in a higher layer than the first semiconductor layer; a third semiconductor layer of a third conductivity type provided between the first and second semiconductor layers and lower in electrical conductivity than the first and second semiconductor layers; and a light-shielding layer provided between the substrate and first semiconductor layer.

Abstract: A sensor device includes sensor elements two-dimensionally arranged and a sensor driving section driving the sensor elements. Each of the sensor elements includes a photoelectric conversion element generating electric charge according to an amount of received light, a charge storage section connected to one end of the photoelectric conversion element and storing electric charge generated by the photoelectric conversion element, a readout section reading either a voltage value resulted from the electric charge in the charge storage section or the stored electric charge, to output the read voltage value or the read electric charge and a reset section resetting the electric charge in the charge storage section through supplying a predetermined reset voltage to the charge storage section. The sensor driving section controls the reset section so that the predetermined reset voltage is continuously or intermittently supplied to the charge storage section over a period exceeding one horizontal scan period.

Abstract: An image pickup unit includes: an image pickup section including a plurality of pixels, the plurality of pixels each including a photoelectric converter device and a field-effect transistor; and a driving section reading out a signal charge with use of the transistor, the signal charge being accumulated in each of the plurality of pixels. The driving section turns off the transistor by applying an off-voltage to the transistor, the off-voltage being set in consideration of an off-leakage current between a source and a drain of the transistor.

Abstract: Disclosed herein is a transistor including: a semiconductor layer; a first gate insulation film and a first interlayer insulation film which are provided on a specific surface side of the semiconductor layer; a first gate electrode provided at a location between the first gate insulation film and the first interlayer insulation film; an insulation film provided on the other surface side of the semiconductor layer; source and drain electrodes provided by being electrically connected to the semiconductor layer; and a shield electrode layer provided in such a way that at least portions of the shield electrode layer face edges of the first gate electrode, wherein at least one of the first gate insulation film, the first interlayer insulation film and the insulation film include a silicon-oxide film.

Abstract: A device for image sensing includes a photoelectric conversion unit and at least one transistor. The photoelectric conversion unit is configured to convert incident electromagnetic radiation into an electric signal. The at least one transistor includes a first gate electrode and a second gate electrode above the first gate electrode. The first gate electrode and the second gate electrode do not overlap each other within a non-overlapping region.

Abstract: A radiation image pickup apparatus allowed to restore a change in characteristics in a pixel transistors caused by radiation, and a method of driving the same are provided. The radiation image pickup apparatus includes: a pixel section including a plurality of unit pixels and generating an electrical signal based on incident radiation, each of the unit pixels including one or more pixel transistors and a photoelectric conversion element; a drive section for selectively driving the unit pixels of the pixel section; and a characteristic restoring section including a first constant current source for annealing and a selector switch for changing a current path from the unit pixels to the first constant current source at the time of non-measurement of the radiation, and allowing an annealing current to flow through the pixel transistor, thereby restoring characteristics of the pixel transistor.

Abstract: A photoelectric conversion element includes a first semiconductor layer that exhibits a first conductivity type and is provided in a selective area over a substrate, a second semiconductor layer that exhibits a second conductivity type and is disposed opposed to the first semiconductor layer, and a third semiconductor layer that is provided between the first and second semiconductor layers and exhibits a substantially intrinsic conductivity type. The third semiconductor layer has at least one corner part that is not in contact with the first semiconductor layer.

Abstract: A radiation image pickup unit includes: a plurality of pixels each configured to generate a signal charge based on a radiation; and a field effect transistor to readout the signal charges from the plurality of pixels. The transistor includes a semiconductor layer including an active layer, a first gate electrode disposed to face the semiconductor layer, a first gate insulating film provided between the semiconductor layer and the first gate electrode, and including a first silicon oxide film, a source electrode and a drain electrode that are electrically connected to the semiconductor layer, and a second silicon oxide film provided in a layer different from the first gate insulating film. The first silicon oxide film of the first gate insulating film is a porous film lower in film density than the second silicon oxide film.

Abstract: A radiation image-pickup device includes: a plurality of pixels configured to generate signal charge based on radiation; and a field effect transistor used to read out the signal charge from the plurality of pixels. The transistor includes a first silicon oxide film, a semiconductor layer, and a second silicon oxide film laminated in order from a substrate side, the semiconductor layer including an active layer, and a first gate electrode disposed to face the semiconductor layer, with the first or the second silicon oxide film interposed therebetween, and the first or the second silicon oxide film or both include an impurity element.

Abstract: There are provided a transistor and a radiation imaging device in which a shift in a threshold voltage due to radiation exposure may be suppressed. The transistor includes a first gate electrode, a first gate insulator, a semiconductor layer, a second gate insulator, and a second gate electrode in this order on a substrate. Each of the first and second gate insulators includes one or a plurality of silicon compound films having oxygen, and a total sum of thicknesses of the silicon compound films is 65 nm or less.

Abstract: An image pickup device that includes: a pixel section including a plurality of pixels each configured to generate a signal charge based on radiation; a first field-effect transistor provided in the pixel section; and a second field-effect transistor provided in a peripheral circuit section of the pixel section. The first transistor has a threshold voltage and the second transistor has a threshold voltage that are different from each other.

Abstract: A thin film semiconductor device formed as integrated circuits on an insulating substrate with bottom gate type thin film transistors stacked with gate electrodes, a gate insulating film and a semiconductor thin film in the order from below upward. The gate electrodes comprise metallic materials with thickness less than 100 nm. The gate insulating film has a thickness thicker than the gate electrodes. The semiconductor thin film comprises polycrystalline silicon crystallized by a laser beam. By reducing thickness of metallic gate electrodes, thermal capacity becomes small and difference in thermal condition on the metallic gate electrodes and on the insulating substrate made of glass or the like becomes small. This invention relates to the task of uniforming and optimizing recrystallization by a laser anneal treatment provided for the semiconductor thin film which works as an active layer of the bottom gate type thin film transistors.

Abstract: A sensor device includes sensor elements arranged in a matrix form, and a sensor driving section driving the sensor elements. Each of the sensor elements includes a photoelectric conversion element generating electric charge, a storage node storing electric charge, to show a voltage which fluctuates according to the stored electric charge, a reset transistor resetting the voltage in the storage node and a readout section reading the voltage value resulted from the stored electric charge in the storage node, to output the resultant voltage value. The sensor driving section controls the reset transistor so that the storage nodes of the sensor elements over sensor element lines are reset into the predetermined reset voltage at a time, and then performs read control after a lapse of a predetermined exposure period to allow the sensor detection signals to be sequentially outputted from the respective sensor elements arranged in each sensor element lines.

Abstract: A thin film semiconductor device formed as integrated circuits on an insulating substrate with bottom gate type thin film transistors stacked with gate electrodes, a gate insulating film and a semiconductor thin film in the order from below upward. The gate electrodes comprise metallic materials with thickness less than 100 nm. The gate insulating film has a thickness thicker than the gate electrodes. The semiconductor thin film comprises polycrystalline silicon crystallized by a laser beam. By reducing thickness of metallic gate electrodes, thermal capacity becomes small and difference in thermal condition on the metallic gate electrodes and on the insulating substrate made of glass or the like becomes small. This invention relates to the task of uniforming and optimizing recrystallization by a laser anneal treatment provided for the semiconductor thin film which works as an active layer of the bottom gate type thin film transistors.

Abstract: In the case of forming switching elements and light sensor elements over the same substrate, an increase in the film thickness of active layers in an attempt to enhance the sensitivity of the light sensor elements would adversely affect the characteristics of the switching elements (TFTs). In a configuration of a display in which a channel layer 25 for constituting thin film transistors to form the switching elements for pixels and a photoelectric conversion layer 35 for constituting the light sensor elements are provided over a gate insulating film 24 on a glass substrate 5 to be provided with a plurality of pixels arranged in a matrix pattern, the photoelectric conversion layer 35 is formed to be thicker than the channel layer 25, and/or the photoelectric conversion layer 35 is formed of a material different from the material for the channel layer 25, whereby the light absorption coefficient of the photoelectric conversion layer 35 is made to be higher than that of the channel layer 25.

Abstract: A thin film semiconductor device formed as integrated circuits on an insulating substrate with bottom gate type thin film transistors stacked with gate electrodes, a gate insulating film and a semiconductor thin film in the order from below upward. The gate electrodes comprise metallic materials with thickness less than 100 nm. The gate insulating film has a thickness thicker than the gate electrodes. The semiconductor thin film comprises polycrystalline silicon crystallized by a laser beam. By reducing thickness of metallic gate electrodes, thermal capacity becomes small and difference in thermal condition on the metallic gate electrodes and on the insulating substrate made of glass or the like becomes small. This invention relates to the task of uniforming and optimizing recrystallization by a laser anneal treatment provided for the semiconductor thin film which works as an active layer of the bottom gate type thin film transistors.

Abstract: A device for image sensing includes a photoelectric conversion unit and at least one transistor. The photoelectric conversion unit is configured to convert incident electromagnetic radiation into an electric signal. The at least one transistor includes a first gate electrode and a second gate electrode above the first gate electrode. The first gate electrode and the second gate electrode do not overlap each other within a non-overlapping region.

Abstract: Techniques are described for detecting and compensating for characteristic changes of a photoelectric conversion element, such as changes related to the temperature of the photoelectric conversion element. A display device that includes an I/O display panel and a light-receiving drive circuit is disclosed. The I/O display panel includes a plurality of display pixels; and a plurality of photoelectric conversion elements including a first photoelectric conversion element that substantially is shielded from light and a second photoelectric conversion element that is exposed to light. The light-receiving drive circuit receives a first detection signal from the first photoelectric conversion element and resets the second photoelectric conversion element based on the first detection signal.

Abstract: A thin film semiconductor device formed as integrated circuits on an insulating substrate with bottom gate type thin film transistors stacked with gate electrodes, a gate insulating film and a semiconductor thin film in the order from below upward. The gate electrodes comprise metallic materials with thickness less than 100 nm. The gate insulating film has a thickness thicker than the gate electrodes. The semiconductor thin film comprises polycrystalline silicon crystallized by a laser beam. By reducing thickness of metallic gate electrodes, thermal capacity becomes small and difference in thermal condition on the metallic gate electrodes and on the insulating substrate made of glass or the like becomes small. This invention relates to the task of uniforming and optimizing recrystallization by a laser anneal treatment provided for the semiconductor thin film which works as an active layer of the bottom gate type thin film transistors.