Teruo Hirayama received a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Waseda University, Tokyo, Japan in 1981, the same year he joined Sony Corporation. He started in the research division of the semiconductor group, where he worked on SRAM and CMOS LSIs. From1993 to1997, he developed embedded DRAM LOGIC LSIs for music and game players. He joined the image sensor division in 2002 and soon started developing back-illuminated CMOS image sensors and launched it into the market in 2009. In the meantime he also developed SiP that consists of a LOGIC and a DRAM chip with wide band interface by connecting with a large number of micro bumps in2004. He became a senior general manager of the semiconductor technology development division in 2010. Then he led the development of semiconductor devices such as a LOGIC chip stacked image sensor, a image sensor with a global shutter and so on. He assumed SVP in 2013.

Abstract

Old video cameras were big and heavy. However, CCD image sensors (CCDs) replaced video camera tubes, so that video cameras became smaller and lighter, and the video camera as a consumer product was born. Moreover CCDs created the market of digital still cameras and replaced film cameras because of their excellent usability.

On the other hand, CMOS image sensors were incorporated into cellular phones that do not require high image quality. In the meantime CCDs were used for digital still cameras, however, their market share declined drastically with the appearance of back illuminated CMOS image sensors (BI sensors) that have better signal noise ratio than CCDs. Afterward LOGIC chip stacked BI sensors were launched. They can improve the characteristics and increase the function of cameras and can miniaturize.

This paper describes the evolution of CMOS image sensors and their application by means of high image quality, high speed operation, low power consumption and stacked structure.