System for integrating a toroidal inductor in a semiconductor device

• US 7,109,838 B2
• Filed: 09/10/2001
• Issued: 09/19/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 09/08/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Texas Instruments, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Texas Instruments, Inc.
• Inventors: Brennan, Kenneth D., Prinslow, Douglas A., Aldrich, David B.
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Tuyen T
• Application Number:
  US09/953,310
• Publication Number:
  US 20020058355A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,835 Days
• Field of Search: 336/200, 336/229, 336/225
• US Class Current: 336/200
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 17/0033 with the coil helically wound around a magnetic core
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/08 including only semiconductor components of a single kind
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 28/10 Inductors

Abstract

An inductor integrated in a semiconductor device comprises a first and second lower electrical trace, an upper electrical trace, aligned at a first end with a first end of the first lower electrical trace and at a second end with a second end of the second lower electrical trace, a first via intercoupling the first end of the upper electrical trace with the first end of the first lower electrical trace, and a second via intercoupling the second end of the upper electrical trace with the second end of the second lower electrical trace.

Claims

1. An inductor for an integrated circuit containing at least three metal levels, comprising:

(a) a first plurality of conductive traces, said traces formed in a first metal level;

(b) a second plurality of conductive traces, said traces formed in a second metal level;

(c) a plurality of vias connecting said first plurality of traces with said second plurality of traces, said traces and vias forming a toroidal coil, wherein said vias extend through a third metal level, said third metal level between said first metal level and said second metal level.

2. The inductor of claim 1, further comprising:

(a) ferromagnetic material within said coil and said third metal level.