Terminations for semiconductor devices with floating vertical series capacitive structures
First Claim
1. A semiconductor device comprising:
- a) a top region, an intermediate region, and a bottom region;
b) a controllable current path traversing any of said regions;
c) a first insulating trench coextensive with and girding said top region and said intermediate region;
d) a first series capacitive structure disposed in said insulating trench and having a biased top element;
wherein said intermediate region has a capacitive property for establishing a capacitive coupling between said first series capacitive structure and said intermediate region, thereby obtaining a high breakdown voltage in said current path; and
e) a termination structure electrically coupled to said first series capacitive structure for controlling an electric field distribution at a periphery of said semiconductor device, thereby obtaining an acceptable breakdown voltage in said termination structure.
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Abstract
This invention relates to achieving high breakdown voltage and low on-resistance in semiconductor devices that have top, intermediate and bottom regions with a controllable current path traversing any of these regions. The device has an insulating trench that is coextensive with the top and intermediate regions and girds these regions from at least one side and preferably from both or all sides. A series capacitive structure with a biased top element and a number of floating elements is disposed in the insulating trench, and the intermediate region is endowed with a capacitive property that is chosen to establish a capacitive interaction or coupling between the series capacitive structure and the intermediate region so that the breakdown voltage VBD is maximized and on-resistance is minimized. A second series capacitive structure disposed in a second insulating trench can be employed to terminate the device.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A semiconductor device comprising:
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a) a top region, an intermediate region, and a bottom region;
b) a controllable current path traversing any of said regions;
c) a first insulating trench coextensive with and girding said top region and said intermediate region;
d) a first series capacitive structure disposed in said insulating trench and having a biased top element;
wherein said intermediate region has a capacitive property for establishing a capacitive coupling between said first series capacitive structure and said intermediate region, thereby obtaining a high breakdown voltage in said current path; and
e) a termination structure electrically coupled to said first series capacitive structure for controlling an electric field distribution at a periphery of said semiconductor device, thereby obtaining an acceptable breakdown voltage in said termination structure. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A method for maximizing the breakdown voltage in a semiconductor device having a top region, an intermediate region and a bottom region and a controllable current path traversing any of said regions, said method comprising:
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a) providing a first insulating trench coextensive with and girding said top region and said intermediate region;
b) disposing a first series capacitive structure in said insulating trench;
c) biasing a top element of said series capacitive structure;
d) adjusting a capacitive property of said intermediate region to establish a capacitive coupling between said series capacitive structure and said intermediate region to obtain a high breakdown voltage in said current path; and
e) controlling an electric field distribution at a periphery of said semiconductor device with a termination structure electrically coupled to said first series capacitive structure, thereby obtaining an acceptable breakdown voltage in said termination structure. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19)
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20. A semiconductor device having cells, each of said cells comprising:
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a) a top region, an intermediate region and a bottom region;
b) a controllable current path traversing any of said regions;
c) an insulating trench coextensive with and girding said top region and said intermediate region;
d) a series capacitive structure disposed in said insulating trench and having a biased tip conductor;
said intermediate region having a capacitive property establishing a capacitive coupling between said series capacitive structure and said intermediate region, thereby obtaining a high breakdown voltage in said current path; and
e) a termination structure electrically coupled to said series capacitive structure for controlling an electric field distribution at a periphery of said semiconductor device, thereby obtaining an acceptable breakdown voltage in said termination structure.
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Specification