WORKSHOP PAPER
Random Telegraph Noise Caused by MOSFET Channel Traps and Variable Gate Induced Leakage with Multiple Sampling Readout
Shang-Fu Yeh1, Meng-Hsu Wu1, Chih-Lin Lee1, Chin Yin1, Kuo-Yu Chou1, Calvin Yi-Ping Chao1
1Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Hsinchu, Taiwan, ROC

Abstract

A study of the effect of correlated double sampling (CDS) and multiple sampling (MS) readout for random telegraph noise (RTN) is presented in this work. A 3-transistor, 1300 x 800 test cell array fabricated in 40 nm low power technology is developed to investigate MOSFET channel RTN and the RTN due to variable gate induced leakage (or GIDL RTN). All transistors in the test cell array are standard I/O devices. In CDS operation, GIDL-RTN near the reset gate-edge is primarily responsible for most of the DUTs in the RTN long tail of inverse cumulative distribution function (ICDF) distribution. The GIDL-RTN can be improved by increasing RSTL voltage. When RSTL is increased to 1.2 V, the main RTN source becomes the source-follower (SF) channel RTN. In MS operation, it is found that MS readout has no effect on GIDL-RTN. In MS operation, the RTN amplitude ratio between main and side peaks is about half, compared to that of the CDS operation. A simple circuit model is used to explain this result. The SF–channel RTN can be reduced by MS operation.
Publisher: IISS (Int. Image Sensors Society)
Year: 2019
Workshop: IISW
URL: https://doi.org/10.60928/uvm4-25gx

Keywords

Random telegraph noise (RTN), correlated double sampling (CDS), multiple sampling (MS), Gate induced drain leakage (GIDL),

References

1) C. Leyris et al., "Impact of random telegraph signal in CMOS image sensors for low-light levels", Proc. ESSCIRC, 2006. https://doi.org/10.1109/esscir.2006.307609
2) X. Wang et al., "Random telegraph signal in CMOS image sensor pixels", Proc. IEDM Tech. Dig., Dec. 2006. https://doi.org/10.1109/iedm.2006.346973
3) B. Pain et al., "Twinkling pixels: random Telegraph signals at reset gate edge", Proc. Int. Image Sensor Workshop, 2007. https://doi.org/10.60928/pd2c-ms1g
4) H. Kim et al., "RTS-like fluctuation in gate induced drain leakage current of saddle-fin type DRAM cell transistor", Proc. IEDM Tech. Dig., 2009. https://doi.org/10.1109/iedm.2009.5424370
5) V. Goiffon et al., "Investigation of dark current random telegraph signal in pinned photodiode CMOS image sensors", IEDM Tech. Dig., Dec. 2011. https://doi.org/10.1109/iedm.2011.6131514
6) C. Durnez et al., "Total Ionizing Dose Radiation-Induced Dark Current Random Telegraph Signal in Pinned Photodiode CMOS Image Sensors", Nuclear Science IEEE Transactions on, 2018. https://doi.org/10.1109/tns.2017.2779979
7) C. Y.-P. Chao et al., "Random Telegraph Noise Pixel Classification and Time Constant Extraction for a 1.1 um Pitch 8.3MP CMOS Image Sensor", Proc. Int. Image Sensor Workshop, 2017. https://doi.org/10.3390/s17122704
8) C. Y.-P. Chao et al., "Random Telegraph Noises in CMOS Image Sensors Caused by Variable Gate-Induced Sense Node Leakage due to X-ray Irradiation", IEEE J. Electron Devices Soc., 2019. https://doi.org/10.1109/jeds.2019.2893299
9) S.-F. Yeh et al., "A 0.66e-rms Temporal-Readout-Noise 3D-Stacked CMOS Image Sensor with Conditional Correlated Multiple Sampling (CCMS) Technique", VLSI Circuits Symp. Dig.. https://doi.org/10.1109/vlsic.2015.7231332