GB2426576A - Light sensor module comprising a plurality of elements in a close-tiled arrangement - Google Patents

Light sensor module comprising a plurality of elements in a close-tiled arrangement Download PDF

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Publication number
GB2426576A
GB2426576A GB0510760A GB0510760A GB2426576A GB 2426576 A GB2426576 A GB 2426576A GB 0510760 A GB0510760 A GB 0510760A GB 0510760 A GB0510760 A GB 0510760A GB 2426576 A GB2426576 A GB 2426576A
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United Kingdom
Prior art keywords
module
circuitry
elements
substrate
light
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Application number
GB0510760A
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GB0510760D0 (en
Inventor
Alan Mathewson
John Carlton Jackson
Joseph O'keeffe
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Sensl Technologies Ltd
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Sensl Technologies Ltd
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Priority to GB0510760A priority Critical patent/GB2426576A/en
Publication of GB0510760D0 publication Critical patent/GB0510760D0/en
Priority to PCT/GB2006/050123 priority patent/WO2006126027A2/en
Publication of GB2426576A publication Critical patent/GB2426576A/en
Withdrawn legal-status Critical Current

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    • GPHYSICS
    • G01MEASURING; TESTING
    • G01JMEASUREMENT OF INTENSITY, VELOCITY, SPECTRAL CONTENT, POLARISATION, PHASE OR PULSE CHARACTERISTICS OF INFRARED, VISIBLE OR ULTRAVIOLET LIGHT; COLORIMETRY; RADIATION PYROMETRY
    • G01J1/00Photometry, e.g. photographic exposure meter
    • G01J1/42Photometry, e.g. photographic exposure meter using electric radiation detectors
    • GPHYSICS
    • G01MEASURING; TESTING
    • G01JMEASUREMENT OF INTENSITY, VELOCITY, SPECTRAL CONTENT, POLARISATION, PHASE OR PULSE CHARACTERISTICS OF INFRARED, VISIBLE OR ULTRAVIOLET LIGHT; COLORIMETRY; RADIATION PYROMETRY
    • G01J1/00Photometry, e.g. photographic exposure meter
    • G01J1/02Details
    • GPHYSICS
    • G01MEASURING; TESTING
    • G01JMEASUREMENT OF INTENSITY, VELOCITY, SPECTRAL CONTENT, POLARISATION, PHASE OR PULSE CHARACTERISTICS OF INFRARED, VISIBLE OR ULTRAVIOLET LIGHT; COLORIMETRY; RADIATION PYROMETRY
    • G01J1/00Photometry, e.g. photographic exposure meter
    • G01J1/02Details
    • G01J1/0204Compact construction
    • HELECTRICITY
    • H01ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01LSEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L27/00Devices consisting of a plurality of semiconductor or other solid-state components formed in or on a common substrate
    • H01L27/14Devices consisting of a plurality of semiconductor or other solid-state components formed in or on a common substrate including semiconductor components sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation
    • H01L27/144Devices controlled by radiation
    • H01L27/146Imager structures
    • H01L27/14601Structural or functional details thereof
    • H01L27/14603Special geometry or disposition of pixel-elements, address-lines or gate-electrodes
    • HELECTRICITY
    • H01ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01LSEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L27/00Devices consisting of a plurality of semiconductor or other solid-state components formed in or on a common substrate
    • H01L27/14Devices consisting of a plurality of semiconductor or other solid-state components formed in or on a common substrate including semiconductor components sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation
    • H01L27/144Devices controlled by radiation
    • H01L27/146Imager structures
    • H01L27/14601Structural or functional details thereof
    • H01L27/1464Back illuminated imager structures
    • HELECTRICITY
    • H01ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01LSEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L27/00Devices consisting of a plurality of semiconductor or other solid-state components formed in or on a common substrate
    • H01L27/14Devices consisting of a plurality of semiconductor or other solid-state components formed in or on a common substrate including semiconductor components sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation
    • H01L27/144Devices controlled by radiation
    • H01L27/146Imager structures
    • H01L27/14643Photodiode arrays; MOS imagers
    • HELECTRICITY
    • H01ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01LSEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L31/00Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof
    • H01L31/08Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof in which radiation controls flow of current through the device, e.g. photoresistors
    • H01L31/10Semiconductor devices sensitive to infrared radiation, light, electromagnetic radiation of shorter wavelength or corpuscular radiation and specially adapted either for the conversion of the energy of such radiation into electrical energy or for the control of electrical energy by such radiation; Processes or apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture or treatment thereof or of parts thereof; Details thereof in which radiation controls flow of current through the device, e.g. photoresistors characterised by at least one potential-jump barrier or surface barrier, e.g. phototransistors
    • H01L31/101Devices sensitive to infrared, visible or ultraviolet radiation
    • H01L31/102Devices sensitive to infrared, visible or ultraviolet radiation characterised by only one potential barrier or surface barrier
    • H01L31/107Devices sensitive to infrared, visible or ultraviolet radiation characterised by only one potential barrier or surface barrier the potential barrier working in avalanche mode, e.g. avalanche photodiode

Abstract

A light sensor module 1 comprises a plurality of light sensing elements 2 such as avalache photodiodes arranged on a substrate 4. The elements cooperate in use to produce a combined output signal indicative of an overall level of light falling on the elements 2. Each element 2 comprises a light input surface 16 arranged to face away from the substrate 4 and an opposed surface 18 arranged to face towards the substrate 4. Each element 2 is arranged to make electrical connection 8 to the substrate 4 through the opposed surface 18 leaving the sides 19 of the element 2 substantially free. This enables adjacent elements 2 to sit closely together to form a close-tiled arrangement of the elements 2 covering a large area. Each element may comprise silicon photo multiplier circuitry and may be flip-chip bonded to the substrate.

Description

2426576
1
Light Sensor Module
The present invention relates to a light sensor module.
Avalanche Photodiode (APD) sensors arc commonly used to detect extremely small amounts of light across the whole spectrum including UV, visible or IR radiation. Typically, a photodiode is biased in avalanche mode, which results in a single incident photon of light producing a large number of electron hole pairs, i.e. a large current.
This results in a low-light signal producing an amplified and readable electrical signal proportional to the input light signal, i.e. an analogue electrical output. Typical amplification or gain for normal APDs is measured in the tens to hundreds [Correct].
This is to be contrasted with Geiger-mode operation of photodiodes. In Geiger mode, the diode junction is reverse-biased above the breakdown voltage for the diode. An incident light photon will cause an uncontrolled avalanche of electron-hole pairs, and hence a large spike of current. A quench circuit detects the surge in current caused by this breakdown and reduces the reverse bias voltage across the junction, which in turn stops the breakdown, and thereby stops the current. The effect is a pulse of current for each photon. Typical amplification or gain values for photodiodes operating in Geiger mode is > 105.
A Silicon Photomultiplier (SiPM) is a relatively new sensor concept, and is described in: (a) Z.Y.Sadygov et al., "Avalanche Semiconductor Radiaton Detectors", Trans.
Nucl. Sci. Vol. 43, No.3 (1996) 1009; and (b) V. Saveliev, "The Recent Development and Study of Silicon Photomultiplier", Nucl. Instr. Meth. A 535 (2004) 528-532.
A SiPM uses an array of photodiodes operating in Geiger mode and sums the electrical output of all the diodes. The net result is a series of pulses (from the diodes that have detected a photon) being added together. As individual diodes detect photons the summed output will increase or decrease. This produces an analogue electrical output which is proportional to the number of photons incident on the total sensor. The gain in this case is still > 105.
2
There are three different categories of existing technology that produce an amplified analogue electrical output signal that is proportional to the optical signal, as set out below. Photon counting or Geiger mode devices do not fall in this classification.
(a) Photomultiplier Tubes (PMTs). These are the traditional solution for applications requiring large area and large gain sensors. They are based on similar technology to that used in early glass tube transistors in the 1950s. Their main disadvantage is that they cannot be miniaturised, require large voltages (of the order of 1000s of V), can be damaged when exposed to ambient or large light and have low Quantum Efficiency.
(b) Normal APDs. The basic operation of these devices has been briefly explained above. This type of dcvice has been the only solid-state APD solution until recently, and has been applied in many applications. However, as mentioned above, the gain is low (typically 10 to 200), and it is difficult to achieve a stable high value of gain. It is also difficult to produce large area devices that do not have large dark current.
(c) SiPMs - Silicon Photomultipliers. These devices are mentioned briefly above. In particular, their gain is very high, and the size of the sensor can also be made relatively large, for example up to 4mm2. For applications above this size, there are a number of technical issues. It is important to have uniformity on the breakdown voltage across the large number of diodes/pixels in a SiPM, and the wafer processing control required to achieve this can become difficult for larger sensors. In addition, as the size of the sensor is increased, so does the sensor capacitance. The signal response time also increases as the capacitancc increases.
It is desirable to address at least some of the above issues and provide a solution for many applications that require one or more of large area, large gain, fast signal response, small size, portability and a low voltage platform.
According to the present invention there is provided a light sensor module comprising a plurality of light sensing elements arranged on a substrate, the elements cooperating in use to produce a combined output signal indicative of an overall level of light falling on the elements, wherein each element comprises a light input surface arranged to face away from the substrate and an opposed surface arranged to face towards the substrate,
3
and is arranged to make electrical connection to the substrate through the opposed surface, leaving the sides of the element substantially free, thereby enabling adjacent elements to sit closely together to form a close-tiled arrangement of the elements covering a large area.
Each element may comprise solid-state light sensing circuitry.
Each element may comprise a silicon die.
Each element may comprise low-voltage circuitry.
Each element may be adapted to produce an amplified electrical output signal which is substantially proportional to the optical input signal.
The output signal may be an analogue output signal.
Each element may comprise high-gain light sensing circuitry.
The gain may be greater than 103.
The gain may be greater than 105.
Each element may comprise Silicon Photomultiplier circuitry.
Each element may have a substantially rectangular footprint.
Adjacent elements may be arranged to abut each other.
The active area of each element may extend substantially to the edges of the element.
Each element may comprise shallow junction circuitry having electrical contacts on the opposed surface.
4
Each element may be prepared using a back thinning technique on the light input surface.
Each element may be flip-chip bonded to the substrate.
The module may comprise additional circuitry for providing additional functionality.
The additional circuitry may comprise processing circuitry for processing signals received from the elements.
The additional circuitry may comprise control circuitry for sending signals to the elements.
The additional circuitry may comprise interface circuitry for interfacing with external apparatus.
The additional circuitry may comprise capacitance decoupling circuitry.
Where the substrate has a light input surface facing the elements and an opposed surface facing away from the elements, the additional circuitry may be mounted on the opposed surface of the substrate.
The additional circuitry may be low-voltage circuitry.
The tiled arrangement may form an overall active area greater than 2 square cm in area.
The tiled arrangement may form an overall active area greater than 5 square cm in area.
The tiled arrangement may form an overall active area greater than 10 square cm in area.
Reference will now be made, by way of example, to the accompanying drawings, in which:
5
Figure 1 shows a side-view of a light sensor module embodying the present invention;
Figure 2 shows a side-view of a light sensor module not embodying the present invention for comparison with Figure 1;
Figure 3 illustrates a shallow junction diode design used in an embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 4 illustrates the result of using a back thinning technique in an embodiment of the present invention;
Figures 5A and 5B are perspective views of a module embodying the present invention; and
Figure 6 shows how a sensor module embodying the present invention can be secured to a light-collecting cone.
Figure 1 shows a side-view of a light sensor module 1 embodying the present invention. The light sensor module 1 comprises a plurality of light sensing elements 2 arranged on a substrate 4. Each light sensing element 2 comprises Silicon Photomultiplier (SiPM) circuitry for light sensing and detection, as described above. The light sensing elements 2 are arranged to cooperate to produce a combined output signal indicative of an overall level of light falling on the light sensing elements 2. This output signal passes out of the module 1 through electrical connector 10 to external circuitry for processing, although processing circuitry can also be provided on the module 1 itself, as explained further below.
Each light sensing element 2 comprises a light input surface 16 arranged to face away from the substrate 4 and an opposed surface 18 arranged to face towards the substrate 4. Each light sensing element 2 is arranged to make electrical connection to the substrate 4 through the opposed surface 18. This is important because it leaves the sides 19 of the light sensing element 2 substantially free. This enables adjacent light sensing elements 2 to sit closely together to form a close-tiled arrangement of light sensing elements 2. This results in a large active area.
6
Figure 2 is an equivalent module shown for comparison in which this feature is not present. The module in Figure 2 does not embody the present invention. In Figure 2, electrical connection is made in a conventional manner through the top surface by wires (wire bonding) that can only reach the substrate 4 by passing the sides of the light sensing elements 2. This results in a much sparser tiling of light sensing elements 2 on the substrate 2. Requiring sufficient space around each light sensing element 2 to make contact to the substrate results in significant space between the individual light sensing elements 2, and hence a very low fill factor.
By contrast, in an embodiment of the present invention, a number of light sensing elements 2 are tiled closely together to produce a very large active area. Tiling individual light sensing elements 2 in this manner reduces the amount of dead space between them. A number of features contribute to achieve this technical advantage in this embodiment of the present invention.
Firstly, a shallow junction diode design is used, meaning that both diode contacts are on the front of the silicon die. One possible implementation is illustrated in Figure 3. Further information can be found in WO 2004/102680 "A photodiode". Further information can also be found in: (a) "Towards integrated single photon counting arrays", J. C. Jackson, D. Phelan, A. P. Morrison, M. Redfern and A. Mathewson, Optical Engineering, vol. 42, no. 1, pp. 112-118, January, 2003 (http://www.photondetection.com/pub/JacksonOE03.html); (b) "Novel geometry photon counting avalanche photodiodes", D. M. Taylor, J. G. Rarity, C. Jackson and Alan Mathewson, CLEO/EQEC, The European Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics and the European Quantum Electronics Conference, Munich, Germany, June, 2003 (http://www.photondetection.com/pub/Taylor03.html); (c) "A Novel Silicon Geiger-Mode Avalanchc Photodiode", J. C. Jackson, A. P. Morrison, D. Phelan and A. Mathewson, IEEE-International Electron Devices Meeting (IEDM), vol. 32.2, December, 2002 (http://www.photondetection.com/pub/JacksonIEDM02.html); and (d) "Geiger Mode Avalanche Photodiodes for Microarray Systems", D. Phelan, J. C. Jackson, R. M. Redfern, A. P. Morrison and A. Mathewson, SPIE, the International Society for Optical Engineering, Biomedical Nanotechnology Architectures and
7
Applications, San Jose, CA, vol. 4626, January, 2002 (http://www.photondetection.com/pub/Phelan02.html).
Secondly, a back thinning technique is employed, in which the back of the silicon die is thinned to enable the light to be applied from the back side the die. This is illustrated in stage 1 of Figure 4, using one diode to show the processes and steps required for back thinning. In practice, each SiPM is an array of such diodes, with the overall devices having two or more contacts or ball bumps. Back thinning also has the effect of significantly increasing the Quantum Efficiency of the sensor, compared to normal or front illumination. Further information can be found in "Wafer Thinning: Techniques for Ultra-thin Wafers" by Manfred Reiche and Gerald Wagner, Advanced Packaging, 21/2/05, and "Temporary bonding technology improves thin wafer handling" by V. Dragoi, C. Schaefer, P. Lindner, M. Wimplinger, and S. Farrens , Solid State technology, March 04.
Thirdly, the silicon dies forming the SiPM light sensing elements 2 are flip-chipped onto the substrate 4. This technique is well known, and uses a process of applying solder bumps to the contacts and then flip-chip bonding the dies to the substrate 4.
Figure 1 shows the solder bumps 8 and how the light sensing elements 2 are flip-chipped onto the substrate 4.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the back side of the die is arranged to be the light input surface, and the front side of the die is arranged to be the opposed surface.
The contacts are located directly behind the active area, ensuring that there is minimal dead space and the active area extends to the edges of the die.
Figures 5A and 5B are perspective views of the module 1 embodying the present invention. Figure 5A is a perspective view showing the light input side of the module 1, while Figure 5B is a perspective view showing the opposed side of the module 1.
Figures 5A and 5B illustrate the highly compact and convenient design of a sensor module 1 embodying the present invention. This is partly achieved through the close tiling advantage described above, but is also partly achieved through the use of a
8
double-sided substrate 4 (for example, PCB or Ceramic). This allows the array of light sensing elements 2 to be arranged on one side, and other circuitry on the opposed side.
The circuitry on the opposed side of the substrate 4 is referenced generally by numeral 12 in Figure 5B, but also includes capacitance decoupling circuitry referenced separately by numeral 6. The capacitance decoupling circuitry 6 helps to alleviate the impact of the relatively large capacitance resulting from the large overall active area, and therefore capacitance, of the sensor module 1, thereby ensuring a fast overall signal response time. This circuitry 6 is conveniently added to the opposed side of the module I for compactness, but this is not essential.
Another problem that the invention overcomes is the fact that a large area sensor has a very high capacitance. This capacitance slows down the overall speed of the dctector. By tiling the detectors together it is possible to sum several different detectors through independent summing electronics. This means a larger area for sensing while still maintaining speed.
An important benefit resulting from the particular sensor module design embodying the present invention is that it allows for the convenient addition of extra functionality to the module according to the particular application in hand. The additional functionality is provided by the circuitry 6, which is preferably added to the opposed side of the sensor module, away from the light sensing circuitry. This feature allows the addition of a great deal of extra processing capability directly onto the module itself, whilst maintaining an extremely compact module size.
This has not been contemplated in this field before, where high voltage sensor module (e.g. PMT) design at the sensing end has led the skilled person to place any low-voltage signal processing circuitry and such-like well away from the from the sensor module.
Examples of the extra functionality that can be provided are digitalisation of the analogue signal, signal processing, including signal amplitude and rise time extraction, time stamping, and the provision of a bus interface. Many other add-ons would be possible.
9
An embodiment of the present invention results in a sensor module that can in practice be used as a "black box" replacement for a conventional PMT, and can be manufactured to the same industry-standard dimensions (e.g. 5cm x 5cm ). This enables a direct replacement for the conventional PMT, providing large area, large gain, fast signal response and additional functionality for specific applications in a small portable, low power module.
Figure 6 shows how a sensor module 1 can be secured to a well known light collecting funnel or cone 22 by way of bolts 16 and guides 17 mating with slots 14 provided in the substrate 4 (see also Figures 5A and 5B). To ensure the module 1 is oriented correctly, different size bolts 16 and guides 17 can be used which match the correct corresponding respective slots 14. The active area of the module 1 is placed at the cone input 24 facing into the cone 22. Contacts 20 are used to supply power to the circuit, for interface signals or electrical bus interface.
In summary, an embodiment of the present invention provides a solution for large area, large gain APDs (Avalanche Photodiode) used for low light detectors and photon counting. An embodiment of the present invention overcomes certain issues associated with conventional (large area, large gain) APDs by using arrays of SiPMs (Silicon Photomultipliers) in a convenient package combined with appropriate electronics. The resulting sensor module can be considered a 'black box" solution providing a "virtual" large area, large gain APD.

Claims (27)

CLAIMS: 10
1. A light sensor module comprising a plurality of light sensing elements arranged on a substrate, the elements cooperating in use to produce a combined output signal indicative of an overall level of light falling on the elements, wherein each element comprises a light input surface arranged to face away from the substrate and an opposed surface arranged to face towards the substrate, and is arranged to make electrical connection to the substrate through the opposed surface, leaving the sides of the element substantially free, thereby enabling adjacent elements to sit closely together to form a close-tiled arrangement of the elements covering a large area.
2. A module as claimed in claim 1, wherein each element comprises solid-state light sensing circuitry.
3. A module as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein each element comprises a silicon die.
4. A module as claimed in claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein each element comprises low-voltage circuitry.
5. A module as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein each element is adapted to produce an amplified electrical output signal which is substantially proportional to the optical input signal.
6. A module as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the output signal is an analogue output signal.
7. A module as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein each element comprises high-gain light sensing circuitry.
8. A module as claimed in claim 7, wherein the gain is greater than 103.
9. A module as claimed in claim 8, wherein the gain is greater than 105.
10. A module as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein each element comprises Silicon Photomultiplier circuitry.
11. A module as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein each element has a substantially rectangular footprint.
12. A module as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein adjacent elements are arranged to abut each other.
13. A module as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the active area of each element extends substantially to the edges of the element.
14. A module as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein each element comprises shallow junction circuitry having electrical contacts on the opposed surface.
15. A module as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein each element is prepared using a back thinning technique on the light input surface.
16. A module as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein each element is flip-chip bonded to the substrate.
17. A module as claimed in any preceding claim, comprising additional circuitry for providing additional functionality.
18. A module as claimed in claim 17, wherein the additional circuitry comprises processing circuitry for processing signals received from the elements.
19. A module as claimed in claim 17 or 18, wherein the additional circuitry comprises control circuitry for sending signals to the elements.
20. A module as claimed in claim 17, 18 or 19, wherein the additional circuitry comprises interface circuitry for interfacing with external apparatus.
12
21. A module as claimed in any one of claims 17 to 20, wherein the additional circuitry comprises capacitance decoupling circuitry.
22. A module as claimed in any one of claims 17 to 21, wherein the substrate has a light input surface facing the elements and an opposed surface facing away from the elements, and wherein the additional circuitry is mounted on the opposed surface of the substrate.
23. A module as claimed in any one of claims 17 to 22, wherein the additional circuitry is low-voltage circuitry.
24. A module as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the tiled arrangement forms an overall active area greater than 2 square cm in area.
25. A module as claimed in claim 24, wherein the tiled arrangement forms an overall active area greater than 5 square cm in area.
26. A module as claimed in claim 25, wherein the tiled arrangement forms an overall active area greater than 10 square cm in area.
27. A module substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Figures 1 and 3 to 6.
GB0510760A 2005-05-27 2005-05-27 Light sensor module comprising a plurality of elements in a close-tiled arrangement Withdrawn GB2426576A (en)

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GB0510760A GB2426576A (en) 2005-05-27 2005-05-27 Light sensor module comprising a plurality of elements in a close-tiled arrangement
PCT/GB2006/050123 WO2006126027A2 (en) 2005-05-27 2006-05-26 Light sensor module

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US8420433B2 (en) 2007-07-30 2013-04-16 Sensl Technologies, Ltd. Tiled light sensing array
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