Patent ID: 8780101

Claim:
A photosensor comprising: a first photodiode and a second photodiode; a storage node to which cathodes of the first and second photodiodes are connected; a storage capacitor, a first terminal of which is connected to the storage node; and a MOS transistor, a gate of which is connected to the storage node, that outputs a signal in accordance with the potential of the storage node, wherein, a forward biased pulse voltage is supplied to an anode of the first photodiode in a reset period, and a reverse biased voltage is supplied to the anode of the first photodiode in a storage period and a readout period, a reverse biased voltage is supplied to an anode of the second photodiode in all operation periods, and a voltage that holds the potential of the storage node in a range less than a threshold value of the MOS transistor is supplied to a second terminal of the storage capacitor in the reset period and the storage period, and a voltage that thrusts the potential of the storage node upward to a range greater than or equal to the threshold value of the MOS transistor is supplied to the second terminal of the storage capacitor in the readout period.