Image pick-up apparatus having a charge coupled device with multiple electrodes, a buffer layer located below some of the electrodes

Claim 1

An image pick-up apparatus comprising: a charge coupled device, said charge coupled device including: a substrate, a channel layer formed in the substrate, for transferring signal charge generated in the device in response to an incident light along with a charge transfer direction, a first transfer electrode group formed on said channel layer and having a first electrode and a second electrode, a second transfer electrode group formed on said channel layer and having a third electrode and a fourth electrode, and a barrier layer group formed in said channel layer and located under said first and third electrode but not located under said second and fourth electrodes; and a driver for controlling said device, wherein said driver applies a pinning voltage to said first and second transfer electrode groups when taking an image, signal charges generated by incident light being accumulated in potential wells equivalent to pixels generated in said channel layer portions underlaying said second and fourth electrodes, and wherein said driver applies two-phase clocks having a "L" level of said pinning voltage and an "H" level of a predetermined voltage higher than the pinning voltage to said first and second transfer electrode groups to mix signal charges accumulated in the adjacent two potential wells when transferring charges, whereby each mixed signal is isolated and transferred.