Patent ID: 7122838

Claim:
A solid-state imaging device, comprising: a plurality of second conductivity photoelectric converting regions formed on a surface region of a first conductivity semiconductor substrate or a first conductivity well; a second conductivity CCD channel region provided adjacent to the photoelectric converting regions; a first conductivity electric charge reading region provided between the photoelectric converting region and the CCD channel region; a first conductivity device separation region provided on circumferences of the photoelectric converting regions excluding the reading region; a plurality of first electric charge transfer electrodes provided on the CCD channel region; and second electric charge transfer electrodes provided between the plurality of first electric charge transfer electrodes, wherein the second electric charge transfer electrodes have an electrode length in an electric charge transfer direction longer than that of the first electric charge transfer electrodes, and function as an electric charge reading gate for reading electric charge from the photoelectric converting regions, and in the CCD channel region under the second electric charge transfer electrodes, a potential gradient deepening in the electric charge transfer direction is provided.