Patent ID: 8384173

Claim:
A solid-state imaging device comprising: a light receiving unit formed in a semiconductor base and configured to perform photoelectric conversion; an insulating layer disposed on the semiconductor base, the insulating layer having an opening above the light receiving unit; a film coating side walls and a flat bottom surface of the opening, the film having a thickness in a range of 1 nm to 100 nm to provide the film with a curved surface, the curved surface being a concave surface facing an interior of the opening resulting from a surface tension characteristic of the film; a core of a waveguide, the core being composed of a material having a refractive index higher than that of a material for the insulating layer and that of a material for the film, the core being on the film and filling the opening; and an inner lens integrated with the waveguide, the inner lens having a lens surface that comprises the curved surface wherein, the insulating layer and the film constitute a cladding of the waveguide.