Metal oxide film resistor

• US 5,889,459 A
• Filed: 11/27/1996
• Issued: 03/30/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 03/28/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Ikeda, Masaki, Shindo, Yasuhiro, Hori, Yoshihiro, Hattori, Akiyoshi, Igarashi, Kouzou, Yoshida, Akihiko
• Primary Examiner(s): Gellner, Michael L.
• Assistant Examiner(s): EASTHOM, KARL D
• Application Number:
  US08/750,205
• Time in Patent Office: 853 Days
• Field of Search: 338/7, 338/8, 338/9, 338/10, 338/225 D, 338/314, 338/308, 338/304, 338/254
• US Class Current: 338/9
• CPC Class Codes: H01C 17/06533 composed of oxides
• CPC Class Codes: H01C 7/06 including means to minimise changes in resistance with changes in temperature

Abstract

According to the present invention, there is provided a metal oxide film resistor which has an insulating substrate, a metal oxide resistive film having at least a metal oxide film having a positive temperature coefficient of resistance and/or a metal oxide film having a negative temperature coefficient of resistance, and/or a metal oxide insulating film. The metal oxide film resistor is not affected by moisture or alkali ions in the insulating substrate. The resistance of the film itself does not change. The metal oxide film resistor is extremely reliable.

Claims

1. A metal oxide film resistor comprising an insulating substrate and a metal oxide resistive film formed on said substrate, wherein said insulating substrate has a surface roughness over 0.3 μ

m, and said metal oxide resistive film comprises at least a first metal oxide layer having a negative temperature coefficient of resistance and a second metal oxide layer having a positive temperature coefficient of resistance, said first metal oxide consisting essentially of a tin oxide and at least one metal oxide in an amount under 10 mol% selected from the group consisting of ferric oxide, chromium oxide and silicon oxide.

2. The metal oxide film resistor according to claim 1 wherein said metal oxide resistive film comprises the first metal oxide layer having a negative temperature coefficient of resistance formed on said substrate and the second metal oxide layer having a positive temperature coefficient of resistance formed on said first metal oxide layer.

3. The metal oxide film resistor according to claim 1 wherein said metal oxide resistive film comprises the second metal oxide layer having a positive temperature coefficient of resistance formed on said substrate and the first metal oxide layer having a negative temperature coefficient of resistance formed on said second metal oxide layer.

4. The metal oxide film resistor according to claim 1 wherein said metal oxide resistive film comprises the first metal oxide layer having a negative temperature coefficient of resistance formed on said substrate, the second metal oxide resistive layer having a positive temperature coefficient of resistance formed on said first metal oxide layer, and a third metal oxide layer having a negative temperature coefficient of resistance formed on said second metal oxide layer.

5. The metal oxide film resistor according to claim 1 wherein said metal oxide layer having a positive temperature coefficient of resistance contains at least one selected from the group consisting of tin oxide, indium oxide and zinc oxide as a principal component.

6. A metal oxide film resistor according to claim 1 wherein a metal oxide insulating film is formed at a location selected from the group consisting of on, under and both on and under said metal oxide resistive film.

7. A metal oxide film resistor according to claim 6 wherein said metal oxide insulating film contains as a principal component at least one selected from the group consisting of tin dioxide, zinc oxide, antimony oxide, aluminum oxide, titanium dioxide, zirconium dioxide and silicon dioxide.

8. The metal oxide film resistor according to claim 6 wherein the elements which are the principal elements of said metal oxide resistive film, said metal oxide insulating film and said insulating substrate diffuse mutually at the contact interfaces between said resistive film, said insulating film and said substrate.

9. A metal oxide film resistor according to claim 6 wherein the metal oxide insulating film is formed on said substrate and the thickness of said metal oxide insulating film is smaller than the surface roughness of said substrate to enable contact between the metal oxide resistive film and a cap terminal.