1/f Noise Modelling and Characterization for CMOS Quanta Image Sensors

This work fits the measured in-pixel source-follower noise in a CMOS Quanta Image Sensor (QIS) prototype chip using physics-based 1/<i>f</i> noise models, rather than the widely-used fitting model for analog designers. This paper discusses the different origins of 1/<i>f</i> noise in QIS devices and includes correlated double sampling (CDS). The modelling results based on the Hooge mobility fluctuation, which uses one adjustable parameter, match the experimental measurements, including the variation in noise from room temperature to -70 °C. This work provides useful information for the implementation of QIS in scientific applications and suggests that even lower read noise is attainable by further cooling and may be applicable to other CMOS analog circuits and CMOS image sensors.