Organic component for overvoltage protection and associated circuit

• US 7,414,513 B2
• Filed: 08/04/2003
• Issued: 08/19/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 08/23/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: PolyIC GmbH & Co. KG (Leonhard KURZ Stiftung & Company KG)
• Original Assignee: PolyIC GmbH & Co. KG (Leonhard KURZ Stiftung & Company KG)
• Inventors: Fix, Walter, Zipperer, Dietmar
• Primary Examiner(s): Vortman; Anatoly
• Application Number:
  US10/524,646
• Publication Number:
  US 20060098362A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,842 Days
• Field of Search: 337/167, 337/296, 337/297
• US Class Current: 337/167
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/0008 General problems related to the reading of electronic memory record carriers, independent of its reading method, e.g. power transfer
• CPC Class Codes: H01C 7/105 Varistor cores H01C7/12 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01C 7/12 Overvoltage protection resistors series resistors structurally associated with spark gaps H01T1/16

Abstract

The invention concerns a component of predominantly organic material which affords overvoltage protection for electronic circuits, and a circuit by which a multiple of the threshold voltage of an individual component can be implemented.

Claims

1. An electronic component for overvoltage protection, comprising:

predominantly organic functional polymers, which component has at least the following layers;

a substrate layer;

a primary electrode layer lying in a first plane;

an organic semiconducting functional layer; and

a secondary electrode layer lying in a second plane spaced from the first plane, the semiconductor layer being coupled only to two electrodes to provide the given threshold set forth below;

wherein the device exhibits a given threshold voltage value manifested by the material compositions of the electrode and semiconductor layers.

2. The component as set forth in claim 1 which has at least one intermediate layer between one of the electrodes and the organic semiconductor layer.

3. A circuit, including at least two components as set forth in claim 1 connected in series for overvoltage protection, wherein the series circuit affords a threshold voltage which corresponds to a multiple of the threshold voltage of the individual components.

4. A circuit, including at least two components as set forth in claim 2 connected in series for overvoltage protection, wherein the series circuit affords a threshold voltage which corresponds to a multiple of the threshold voltage of the individual components.