A solid state imaging device having a multiplication register is known in the art (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 to 3 mentioned below). In such a solid state imaging device, an electric charge read out from an imaging region is transferred to the multiplication register via a horizontal shift register. The multiplication register typically includes an insulating layer formed on a semiconductor layer, and a transfer electrode formed on the insulating layer. In the multiplication register, in a state that a certain electrode (DC electrode) is fixed by applying a direct current to it, when an electric potential of a next-stage transfer electrode (multiplication electrode) is greatly increased, electron multiplication takes place when an electric charge is transferred between these electrodes.