Abstract
It is a tendency using the mature CMOS technology to fabricate cheaper but higherperformance image sensors to take place CCDs in imaging applications. There are severalkinds of CMOS image sensor, such as photo-gate type, photo-diode type, etc. In this paper, we will focus on these two types of imager to measure their dark current, saturation level,sensitivity and other characteristics by designing a variety of active pixeltest-keys. Therefore, we can analyze their formingmechanisms, and then improve theimaging qualities by changing the process parameters of these devices, unlike others'methods : bettering the imaging qualities through external image processing. We will design and develop other new image sensor structures toimprove the characteristics without changing standard CMOS technology or with least changes. Besides, we will set up a measurement system to facilitate our research. Andwe will go toward one-million-pixel CMOS image sensor in the near future. CMOS image sensor has some advantages: low cost, low power consumption and high integrate. We must understand effects upon the sensing quality detail to improve CMOS imager. In this paper, we design different structures of photodiode in CMOS imager base on the 0.6mm CMOS technologic of TSMC. We find N+-P photodiode has good characteristic in dark current and dynamic range measurement; the structure of N-Well has good characteristic in sensitivity and sensing speed measurement. On the other hand, we design a new "Wafer Level" measurement system.