Semiconductor hall sensor

• US 6,803,638 B2
• Filed: 03/09/2004
• Issued: 10/12/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 07/26/2001
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Asahi Kasei Electronics Co., Ltd. (Asahi Kasei Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Asahi Kasei Electronics Co., Ltd. (Asahi Kasei Corporation)
• Inventors: Takatsuka, Toshinori
• Primary Examiner(s): NGO, NGAN V
• Application Number:
  US10/472,959
• Publication Number:
  US 20040129934A1
• Time in Patent Office: 217 Days
• Field of Search: 257/421, 257/422, 257/424, 257/425, 257/427
• US Class Current: 257/422
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/07 Hall effect devices
• CPC Class Codes: H10N 52/101 Semiconductor Hall-effect devices

Abstract

A semiconductor Hall sensor can reduce measuring error due to an unbalanced voltage by decreasing the unbalanced voltage, and improve resistance to electrostatic by suppressing maximum electric field in the sensor. A cross-shaped pattern of the semiconductor Hall sensor includes cutouts at its concave corners. Among the four concave corners of the cross-shaped pattern, consecutive two or four concave corners are provided with the cutouts. Besides, among the four concave corners of the cross-shaped patterns, the consecutive two or four concave corners have an acute angle at the intersection of the input terminal side pattern and output terminal side pattern. The semiconductor Hall sensor becomes insensitive to defects or unbalance of its pattern, thereby being able to reduce the unbalanced voltage as compared with a conventional cross-shaped pattern of the semiconductor Hall sensor.

Claims

1. A semiconductor Hall sensor having a cross-shaped pattern that includes an input side pattern with a length and width of L1 and W1 and a output side pattern with a length and width of L2 and W2, said semiconductor Hall sensor being characterized in that:

a film thickness, impurity concentration, the length L1 and width W1 of the input side pattern and length L2 and width W2 of the output side pattern are maintained; and

at least one of a resistance across input side terminals and a resistance across output side terminals is made 1.25 to 2.75 times a resistance of a cross-shaped pattern consisting of a rectangle with the length L1 and width W1 serving as the input side pattern, and a rectangle with the length L2 and width W2 serving as the output side pattern.

2. The semiconductor Hall sensor as claimed in claim 1, wherein at least one type of cutouts at consecutive two or four concave corners among four concave corners of cross-shaped semiconductor Hall sensor, said cutouts having a geometry of one of a square, polygon, circle, ellipse and a combination of these forms.

3. The semiconductor Hall sensor as claimed in claim 2, wherein at least one of the resistance across the input side terminals and the resistance across the output side terminals is 1.5 to 2.5 times the resistance of the cross-shaped pattern consisting of the rectangle with the length L1 and width W1 serving as the input side pattern, and the rectangle with the length L2 and width W2 serving as the output side pattern.

4. The semiconductor Hall sensor as claimed in claim 2, wherein said consecutive two or four concave corners of the four concave corners of the cross-shaped pattern have an acute angle at an intersection of the input terminal side pattern and the output terminal side pattern of the cross-shaped pattern.

5. The semiconductor Hall sensor as claimed in claim 3, wherein both the resistance across the input side terminals and the resistance across the output side terminals are 1.5 to 2.5 times the resistance of the cross-shaped pattern consisting of the rectangle with the length L1 and width W1 serving as the input side pattern, and the rectangle with the length L2 and width W2 serving as the output side pattern.

6. The semiconductor Hall sensor as claimed in claim 3, wherein said consecutive two or four concave comers of the four concave comers of the cross-shaped pattern have an acute angle at an intersection of the input terminal side pattern and the output terminal side pattern of the cross-shaped pattern.

7. The semiconductor Hall sensor as claimed in claim 5, wherein said consecutive two or four concave corners of said four concave corners of the cross-shaped pattern have an acute angle at an intersection of the input terminal side pattern and the output terminal side pattern of the cross-shaped pattern.

8. The semiconductor Hall sensor as claimed in claim 1, wherein at least one of the resistance across the input side terminals and the resistance across the output side terminals is 1.5 to 2.5 times the resistance of the cross-shaped pattern consisting of the rectangle with the length L1 and width W1 serving as the Input side pattern, and the rectangle with the length L2 and width W2 serving as the output side pattern.

9. The semiconductor Hall sensor as claimed in claim 8, wherein both the resistance across the input side terminals and the resistance across the output side terminals are 1.5 to 2.5 times the resistance of the cross-shaped pattern consisting of the rectangle with the length L1 and width W1 serving as the input side pattern, and the rectangle with the length L2 and width W2 serving as the output side pattern.

10. The semiconductor Hall sensor as claimed in claim 8, wherein said consecutive two or four concave corners of the four concave corners of the cross-shaped pattern have an acute angle at an intersection of the input terminal side pattern and the output terminal side pattern of the cross-shaped pattern.

11. The semiconductor Hall sensor as claimed in claim 9, wherein said consecutive two or four concave corners of said four concave corners of the cross-shaped pattern have an acute angle at an intersection of the input terminal side pattern and the output terminal side pattern of the cross-shaped pattern.