DESIGN OF STANDARD CMOS TIME-OF-FLIGHT PIXEL USING CHARGE TRANSFER EFFICIENCY METHOD

By

AMAD UD DIN

Thesis Submitted to the School of Graduate Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia, in Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science

April 2011

Do they say: 'He has invented this Book himself?' Say: 'If that is so, bring ten surahs the like of it of your composition, and call upon all (the deities or gods) you can other than Allah to your help. Do so if you are truthful (Surah Houd, Ayat # 13)

I dedicate this humble effort, the fruit of my thoughts & study to my Parents (Dr Zahoor & Nusrat), Spouse (Nuzhat), my Sisters (Iram, Sadaf & Iqra), my Son (Hapi Bai), my teachers and to all those who love me for their support and encouragement they provided me to achieve this goal.

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Abstract of thesis presented to the Senate of Universiti Putra Malaysia in fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Science DESIGN OF STANDARD CMOS TIME-OF-FLIGHT PIXEL USING CHARGE TRANSFER EFFICIENCY METHOD

By AMAD UD DIN April 2011

Chairman: Faculty :

Izhal b. Abdul Halin, D. Eng Engineering

Time of Flight (TOF) range imaging is performed by sensing the delay time, TD of a known modulated light signal to reach the sensor after it has been back reflected from objects in a scene. This delay time is then used to measure distance of objects in a scene in real time. Recently, research on TOF image sensors has been receiving a great deal of attention mainly due to demand from scientific, medicine and industrial community. A CMOS TOF Pixels using the Gates on Field Oxide Structure has been realized where delay time dependant charge separation is achieved using two polysilicon gates that connect the photo collection site to two floating diffusion output nodes. The two outputs are consequently used to calculate the range of objects in a scene in real time. However, an extra mask layer is required to form a lightly doped n-buried layer under the gates and photo collection site to allow efficient charge transfer. Addition of this layer into the fabrication process increases cost. A solution to this is to design the pixel using standard CMOS circuit components.

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This thesis discusses the design of an Active Pixel TOF Sensor using high gain amplifiers to mimic the delay dependent signal charge separation mechanism as in the Gates on Field Oxide pixel. It focuses on amplifier selection based on its Charge Transfer Efficiency (CTE) which is defined as the ability of an amplifier to transfer charge from its input node to its output. Linearity of the TOF active pixel sensor depends on the CTE. Keeping in view the requirement of very high gain, four different types of amplifiers which are the Two-Stage OPAMP, Folded Cascode, Telescopic and Cascode amplifiers are designed using a 0.18m CMOS process and analysed. From the analysis, it is concluded that the Cascode amplifier is best suited to be used in the TOF pixel as it has the highest gain of 131.21dB. This high gain gives a CTE of 95% while dissipating only1.32W of power. The simulation concludes that a TOF pixel with a high CTE can be fabricated using an unmodified standard CMOS process, hence further reducing fabrication cost of these sensors.

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Abstrak tesis yang dikemukakan kepada Senat Universiti Putra Malaysia sebagai memenuhi keperluan untuk ijazah Master Sains REKAAN PIKSEL CMOS MASA-TERBANG MENGGUNAKAN KEBERKESANAN PEMINDAHAN CAS

Oleh AMAD UD DIN April 2011

Pengerusi : Fakulti :

Izhal Abdul Halin, D. Eng Kejuruteraan

Jarak pengimejan masa penerbangan (TOF) di persembahkan dengan mengesan masa tertangguh, TD daripada isyarat cahaya termodulisasi yang diketahui untuk sampai kepada pengesan selepas ianya di pantulkan semula daripada objek-objek dalam suatu scene. Masa tertangguh ini kemudiannya digunakan untuk megukur jarak objek-objek dalam suatu scene dalam waktu sebenar. Baru-baru ini, kajian ke atas pengesan imej TOF telah menerima banyak perhatian terutamanya kerana permintaan daripada komuniti ilmiah, perubatan dan perindustrian. CMOS TOF Pixel menggunakan gate pada struktur medan oksida telah direalisasikan di mana cas pemisahan bergantung kepada masa tertangguh dicapai menggunakan dua gate polisilikon yang menyambungkan tapak pengumpulan/pertukaran foto kepada dua nod keluaran floating diffusion. Kedua-dua keluaran kemudiannya digunakan untuk mengira jarak objek-objek dalam suatu adegan dalam masa sebenar. Namun, lebihan mask layer diperlukan untuk membentuk lapisan tertanam-n yang dimasukkan secara ringan dibawah gerbang dan tapak pengumpulan foto untuk membenarkan peralihan

cas yang lebih berkesan. Penambahan pada lapisan ini ke dalam proses fabrikasi menambahkan kos. Penyelesaian kepada perkara ini adalah dengan merekabentuk pixel menggunakan piawaian komponen-komponen litar CMOS.

Thesis ini membincangkan rekabentuk pengesan Pixel Aktif TOF menggunakan penguat gandaan operasi yang tinggi untuk meniru mekanisma caj pemisahan bergantung kepada TOF seperti di dalam gerbang pada pixel medan oksida. Ia memfokuskan kepada pemilihan penguat operasi bergantung kepada keberkesanan peralihan cas (CTE) yang di definasikan sebagai keupayaan penguat operasi untuk mengalihkan cas daripada nod masukan kepada keluarannya. Linear pixel aktif TOF bergantung kepada CTE. Mengambil kira permintaan terhadap gain yang tinggi, empat jenis penguat operasi yang berbeza iaitu OPAMP dua tahap, Folded Cascode, Telescopic dan penguat operasi Cascode direkabentuk menggunakan proses CMOS 0.18m dan kemudiannya dianalisa. Daripada analisis, boleh dikatakan penguat operasi cascade paling sesuai untuk digunakan didalam pixel TOF kerana ia mempunyai kedapatan yang tertinggi iaitu pada 131.21 dB. Kedapatan yang tinggi ini memberi CTE pada 95% sementara menghilangkan hanya 1.32 W kuasa. Simulasi mendapati pixel TOF dengan CTE yang tinggi boleh difabrikasi menggunakan proses standard CMOS yang tidak diubahsuai, seterusnya

menggurangkan kos fabrikasi pengesan-pengesan ini.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

In the name of Allah, The Most Merciful and Most Benevolent I am extremely thankful to my supervisor, Dr Izhal Abdul Halin for his inspiring encouragement and full support from the initial phase of implementation to completion and for his diligence in reviewing the draft and final copies of the manuscripts.

I bow my head before Allah Almighty Who blessed me with good health and vision to accomplish this endeavor. These investigations were supervised by Senior Lecturer Dr. Izhal Abdul Halin, Associate Professor Dr. Ishak b. Aris and Senior Lecturer Dr. Maryam Bt. Mohd. Isa. I wish to express my sincere thanks to worthy members of my supervisory committee for their consistent guidance, support and encouragement throughout the study period. Special thanks to the teaching staff of the faculty who provided me the advance knowledge and training in related fields. My special thanks are extended to Dr Ghlam Ali Bajwa, Dr Amanullah Akhtar, Dr Zahid Rizwan, Dr. Fasih ud Din, Hur A. Hassan, Tan Gim Heng and Muhammad Sabir Hussain for their encouragement and assistance during this period. To those individuals and agencies not mentioned, but who in one way or another contributed in the completion of this research work, thank you for your cooperation, JAZAKUMULLAH..

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Finally I wish to express my gratitude to my parents for their prayers, love, continuous support and encouragement. I would like to acknowledge that all these endeavours and achievements are endowed to my father Dr. Zahoor ud Din, my mother Nusrat Shaheen my wife, Nuzhat ul Ain, sisters, Iram, Sadaf, Iqra and especially my son Hapi Bai for their love, patience and understanding they showed throughout this period.

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This thesis was submitted to the Senate of the Universiti Putra Malaysia and has been accepted as fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Science. The members of the Supervisory Committee were as follows: Izhal b. Abdul Halin, D.Eng Senior Lecturer Faculty of Engineering Universiti Putra Malaysia (Chairman) Ishak b. Aris , PhD Associate Professor Faculty of Engineering Universiti Putra Malaysia (Member) Maryam bt. Mohd Isa, PhD Senior Lecturer Faculty of Engineering Universiti Putra Malaysia (Member)

HASANAH MOHD GHAZALI, PhD Professor and Dean School Of Graduate Studies Universiti Putra Malaysia Date:

DECLARATION R

I declare t that the thes is my or sis riginal work except for quotations and citatio which k r on have been duly ackno n owledged. I also decla that it ha not been previously and is are as y, not concu urrently, sub bmitted for any other degree at Universiti Putra Mala r r aysia or other insti itutions.

AD N AMA UD DIN Date:

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TABLE OF CONTENTS Pages DEDICATION ABSTRACT ABSTRAK ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS APPROVAL DECLARATION LIST OF TABLES LIST OF FIGURES LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS CHAPTER ii iii v vii ix xii xvii xviii xxi

1 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6

INTRODUCTION Brief Introduction Time of Flight (TOF) Image Sensor Setup Problem Statement Aim and Objective Scope of Work Thesis Layout 1 3 4 5 5 5

2 2.1 2.2

LITERATURE REVIEW Introduction CMOS Image Sensor Three Transistor (3T) Active Pixel Sensor Four Transistor (4T) Active Pixel Sensor Advantages of CMOS Image Sensors Charge Coupled Devices (CCD) Image Sensors Comparison between CMOS and CCD Image Sensors Range Imaging Methods of Range Imaging Types of CMOS TOF Sensors Active CMOS TOF Pixel Gated CMOS TOF Pixel Various CMOS Amplifiers Two-Stage Operational Amplifier Folded Cascode Amplifier Telescopic Amplifier xii 7 7 9 10 12 12 14 16 18 23 23 24 25 26 27 29

2.2.1 2.2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.6.1 2.7 2.7.1 2.7.2 2.8 2.8.1 2.8.2 2.8.3

2.9 2.10 2.11

2.8.4 Cascode Amplifier Charge Transfer Efficiency (CTE) Charge Injection Cancellation Summary

30 31 32 34

3 3.1 3.2

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY AND DESIGN Introduction Various Amplifiers Designs Design Specifications and Process Parameters Two-Stage Operational Amplifier Single Ended Folded Cascode Amplifier Telescopic Amplifier Cascode Amplifier Gain and Phase Measurement Method Amplifier Selection Charge Transfer Efficiency (CTE) Amplifier CTE Analysis Active Pixel TOF Sensor Design and Functionality Simulation Range Measurement Calculation of Active TOF Pixel Photodiode Model and Required Light Intensity Summary 36 37 38 39 43 48 52 55 56 57 59 60 61 63 64

3.2.1 3.2.2 3.2.3 3.2.4 3.2.5 3.2.6 3.3 3.4 3.4.1 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8

4 4.1 4.2 4.2.1 4.2.2 4.2.3 4.2.4 4.2.5 4.3 4.3.1 4.4 4.4.1 4.5 4.6 4.7

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Introduction Amplifier Simulation Results Two-Stage OPAMP Simulation Results Folded Cascode Amplifier Simulation Results Telescopic Amplifier Simulation Results Cascode Amplifier Simulation Results Comparison of Amplifiers Charge Transfer Efficiency (CTE) Analysis CTE Amplifiers Simulation Cascode TOF Pixels Error Charge and Non-Linearity in Cascode TOF Pixel Folded Cascode Pixel Folded Cascode versus Gain Boosted Summary 65 65 66 68 70 72 73 74 75 77 78 81 84 85

5 5.1

CONCLUSION AND FUTURE WORKS Conclusion xiii 86

5.2 5.3

Limitations and Future Work Benchmarking

87 88 90 94 95

REFERENCES BIODATA OF STUDENT LIST OF PUBLICATIONS

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LIST OF TABLES

Table 2.1 2.2 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 CCD versus CMOS Image Sensor Technology Relationship between Delay Time Measurement Resolution and Distance Based on the TOF Method Target Specifications of the Design TSMC 0.18m Process Parameters Aspect Ratios for Two-Stage OPAMP Aspect Ratios for Folded Cascode Amplifier Aspect Ratios for Single Ended Folded Cascode Aspect Ratios for Telescopic Amplifier Aspect Ratios for Cascode Amplifier Simulated Results of Two-Stage OPAMP Simulated Results of Folded Cascode Amplifier Simulated Results of Telescopic Amplifier Simulated Results of Cascode Amplifier Comparison of Different Amplifiers Charge Accumulated at Different Amplifiers Output

Page 16 22 38 39 43 47 48 52 55 67 70 71 73 74 76

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LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1.1 1.2 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.9 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 2.17 2.18 Galileo Galileis Experiment Basic Principle of Time of Flight (TOF) Range Imaging CMOS (a) Passive Pixel Sensor Schematic (b) Active Pixel Sensor Schematic (c) Imager Block Diagram Conventional 3-Transistor APS (a) Schematic (b) Pixel Timing Diagram Conventional 4-Transistor APS (a) Schematic (b) Pixel Timing Diagram Three Phase CCD (a) Transfer Mechanism (b) Clocking Scheme CCD Imager Block Diagram Measured Range versus Range Resolution for three Different Range Imaging Techniques Working Principle of Michelson Interferometer 18 Triangulation Setup (a) Passive Triangulation (b) Active Triangulation Time-of-Flight (TOF) Method Schematic of the TOF Pixel Sensor GOFO TOF Pixel Cross Section (a) x-Plane Cross Section (b) y-Plane Cross Section Schematic Design of CMOS Two-Stage OPAMP Folded Cascode Circuits (a) NMOS (b) PMOS Schematic Design of CMOS Folded Cascode Amplifier Schematic Design of CMOS Telescopic Amplifier Schematic Design of CMOS Cascode Amplifier Charge Transfer Efficiency Equivalent Circuit Addition of Dummy Device to Reduce Charge Injection and Clock Feed Through xvi

Page 2 3 8 10 11 13 14 17

20 21 23 24 26 27 28 29 30 31 32

2.19 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 3.9 3.10 3.11 3.12 4.1 4.2

Use of Complementary Switches to Reduce Charge Injection Flow Chart Illustrating the Design Procedures for the TOF Active Pixel Sensor using Amplifiers Topologies Schematic Design of CMOS Two-Stage OPAMP Schematic Design of CMOS Folded Cascode Amplifier Schematic Design of CMOS Single Ended Folded Cascode Amplifier Schematic Design of CMOS Telescopic Amplifier Schematic Design of CMOS Cascode Amplifier Active Pixel TOF Sensor Equivalent Charge Transfer Efficiency Circuit CTE Amplifiers Analysis Circuit (a) Without Dummy Switches (b) With Dummy Switches Schematic of Simulated TOF Cascode Pixel (a) Dummy Switches in Pixel (b) No Dummy Switches in Pixel Control Signals for the TOF Active Pixel Sensor Photodiode Model for Simulation Frequency Response of Two-Sage OPAMP (a) Gain Bandwidth (b) Phase Frequency Response of Folded Cascode Amplifier (a) SingleStage Folded Cascode Amplifier (Gain Bandwidth and Phase) (b) 2-Stage Folded Cascode Amplifier Design (Gain Bandwidth and Phase) Frequency Response of Telescopic Amplifier (a) Gain Bandwidth (b) Phase Frequency Response of Cascode Amplifier a) gain Bandwidth b) Phase Calculated Charge Transfer Efficiency CTE Amplifiers Analysis Cascode TOF Pixel Simulation Output for TD=0ns

34 37 40 44 47 49 53 57 58 59 60 61 63 67

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4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7

71 72 75 76 78

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4.8 4.9 4.10 4.11

Signal Voltage versus Accumulation time in Cascode Pixel (a) No Dummy Switches (b) Dummy Switches in Pixel Folded Cascode TOF Pixel Simulation Output for TD=0ns Signal Voltage versus Accumulation time in Folded cascode Pixel (a) No Dummy Switches (b) Dummy Switches in Pixel Comparison between Folded Cascode and Gain Boosted

80 81 83 85

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LISTS OF ABBREVATIONS ox n p A APS c CG CL CMOS Cox CTE dB DC f GBW GOFO gds gm h IC ID Kn, p L Oxide Permittivity (physical material constant) Charge Transfer Efficiency Electron Mobility (physical material constant), n = 259.43 Hole Mobility (physical material constant), p = 109.976 Open Loop DC gain Active Pixel Sensor Velocity of Light, c = 3 x 108 (m/s) Gate Capacitance Load Capacitance Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor Gate-oxide Capacitance Cox= ox / tox = 0.841 Charge Transfer Efficiency Decibel Direct Current Frequency Gain-bandwidth product Gates on Field Oxide Structure Channel Conductance Transconductance Plancks constant Integrated Circuit Drain Current Process Transconductance i.e. kP=66.091A/V2 and KN=218.48 A/V2 Range xix

MOS k Ne: NMOS PMOS RON TD TOF tox Vtn Vtp VDD Vdsat VGS Vth W/L n, p

Metal Oxide Semiconductor Boltzmanns Constant, k = 1.602 10 -19C Number of Electrons per Pixel N-channel Metal Oxide Semiconductor P-channel Metal Oxide Semiconductor Switch on-resistance Time Delay Time of Flight Oxide thickness Threshold Voltage of NMOS, Vtn = 0.37V Threshold Voltage of PMOS, Vtp = |0.39|V Positive Supply Voltage Drain-source Saturation Voltage Gate-source Voltage Threshold Voltage Aspect Ratio Channel Length Modulation Parameter n=0.72V-1 ,p=2.19V-1

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