Mechanical quantity measurement device and pressure sensor using same

• US 10,408,692 B2
• Filed: 07/29/2016
• Issued: 09/10/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hitachi Astemo Ltd. (Hitachi, Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Hitachi Automotive Systems Limited (Hitachi, Ltd.)
• Inventors: Miyajima, Kentarou
• Primary Examiner(s): Schmitt, Benjamin R
• Application Number:
  US15/577,394
• Publication Number:
  US 20180164168A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,138 Days
• Field of Search: 73774, 73777
• CPC Class Codes: G01B 7/18 using change in resistance
• CPC Class Codes: G01L 1/18 using properties of piezo-resistive materials, i.e. materials of which the ohmic resistance varies according to changes in magnitude or direction of force applied to the material
• CPC Class Codes: G01L 1/2268 Arrangements for correcting or for compensating unwanted effects
• CPC Class Codes: G01L 1/2293 of the semi-conductor type semi-conductor devices controllable by variations of applied mechanical force H01L29/84
• CPC Class Codes: G01L 9/0042 Constructional details associated with semiconductive diaphragm sensors, e.g. etching, or constructional details of non-semiconductive diaphragms details about the integration or bonding of piezoresistor in or on the diaphragm G01L9/0052 and G01L9/0057 respectively
• CPC Class Codes: G01L 9/0055 bonded on a diaphragm
• CPC Class Codes: G01L 9/06 of piezo-resistive devices
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/84 controllable by variation of applied mechanical force, e.g. of pressure

Abstract

Provided are a mechanical quantity measurement device having a higher signal-to-noise ratio and resolution than the prior art and a pressure sensor using the same. A mechanical quantity measurement device that is provided with a plurality of Wheatstone bridges on the main surface of a single semiconductor substrate that are composed from impurity-diffused resistors and detect the difference between the strain amount occurring in the x-axis direction and the strain amount occurring in the y-axis direction, which intersect at right angles on the main surface of the semiconductor substrate, said mechanical quantity measurement device being characterized in that the impurity-diffused resistors composing the plurality of Wheatstone bridges are disposed evenly in an area to be measured.

Claims

1. A mechanical quantity measuring apparatus including:

a plurality of Wheatstone bridges formed on a main surface of a semiconductor substrate by a plurality of impurity diffusion resistors, and

an adder circuit that receives and adds output differential voltage values of the plurality of Wheatstone bridges, wherein

the plurality of impurity diffusion resistors are arranged to be close to each other so that output signal components which are the output differential voltage values of the plurality of Wheatstone bridges increase with approximately equal sensitivities in accordance with an average strain quantity in a region to be measured, and

a difference between a strain quantity generated in an x-axial direction and a strain quantity generated in a y-axial direction is detected from the additional result of the adder circuit, the x-axial direction and the y-axial direction being perpendicular to each other on the main surface of the semiconductor substrate.

2. The mechanical quantity measuring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the main surface of the semiconductor substrate is a face of single-crystal silicon.

3. The mechanical quantity measuring apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the x-axial direction and the y-axial direction correspond to a direction of a silicon substrate, and

wherein each of the plurality of Wheatstone bridges includes four resistors which is the plurality of impurity diffusion resistors providing current in the direction, and the four resistors comprise a first y-axial-direction resistor and a second y-axial-direction resistor each being formed by a P-type diffusion resistor having a longitudinal direction in the y-axial direction, and arranged in a direction of causing current to flow parallel to the y axis, and a first x-axial-direction resistor and a second x-axial-direction resistor each being formed by a P-type diffusion resistor having a longitudinal direction in the x-axial direction, and arranged in a direction of causing current to flow parallel to the x axis.

4. The mechanical quantity measuring apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the respective resistors forming the plurality of Wheatstone bridges are arranged to be adjacent to each other with a shorter interval than a length thereof in the longitudinal direction.

5. The mechanical quantity measuring apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the adder circuit and an output terminal of the adder circuit are arranged on the main surface of the semiconductor substrate.

6. A pressure sensor having a semiconductor strain sensor connected onto a metallic diaphragm, wherein the semiconductor strain sensor is the mechanical quantity measuring apparatus according to claim 1.

7. The pressure sensor according to claim 6, wherein the semiconductor strain sensor is connected onto the metallic diaphragm by means of solder joint.

8. The pressure sensor according to claim 6, wherein the pressure sensor is a pressure sensor for an automotive engine.