Fabrication of Infrared Filters for Three-Dimensional CMOS Image Sensor Applications

Abstract

Infrared (IR) filters were developed to implement integrated three-dimensional (3D) image sensors that are capable of obtaining both color image and depth information at the same time. The combination of light filters applicable to the 3D image sensor is composed of a modified IR cut filter mounted on the objective lens module and on-chip filters such as IR pass filters and color filters. The IR cut filters were fabricated by inorganic SiO2/TiO2 multilayered thin-film deposition using RF magnetron sputtering. On-chip IR pass filters were synthetized by dissolving various pigments and dyes in organic solvents and by subsequent patterning with photolithography. The fabrication process of the filters is fairly compatible with the complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) process. Thus, the IR cut filter and IR pass filter combined with conventional color filters are considered successfully applicable to 3D image sensors.