The transfer unit 12, which is constituted with a transistor M1 controlled with a drive signal ?TX, transfers the electric charge resulting from photoelectric conversion at the photoelectric conversion unit 11 to the FD 14. Namely, the transfer unit 12 forms an electric charge transfer path between the photoelectric conversion unit 11 and the FD 14. The transistor M1 is a transfer transistor. The electric charge transferred to the FD 14 is accumulated (held) in a capacitor C at the FD 14. The FD 14 also functions as an accumulating unit 14 that accumulates an electric charge.