| 摘要 |
PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a solid-state imaging element and a drive method thereof capable of easily revising the number of summated pixels in the horizontal direction and achieving a high speed frame rate at imaging of a moving picture. SOLUTION: A summation section 20 being a gate region comprising m×j rows is provided to a vertical transmission section 10 toward a side of a horizontal transfer section and x sets of first transfer gate groups 21 and (j-(x-1)) sets of second transfer gate groups 22 each comprising m rows and K columns are alternately arranged in the horizontal direction to rows at the side of the horizontal transfer section from (x-1)×(m+1)th row to (x×m)th row (x is a natural number from 1 to j) relative to a pixel period K of light receiving section pixels in the horizontal direction. In the case of a summation drive mode, a first operating period wherein signal electric charges of both the transfer gate groups are vertically transferred and a second operating period wherein signal electric charges of only the second transfer gate groups are vertically transferred are combined. Since the transfer period is shorter for columns including many of the second transfer gate groups and the transfer period is longer for columns including many of the first transfer gate groups, the signal electric charges earlier transferred to the horizontal transfer section are horizontally transferred by the horizontal transfer section and the horizontal transfer section can summate the electric charges to transferred signal electric charges later. COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT
|
