Semiconductor carrier with vertical power FET module

• US 8,749,054 B2
• Filed: 06/24/2011
• Issued: 06/10/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 06/24/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: L. Pierre De Rochemont
• Original Assignee: L. Pierre De Rochemont
• Inventors: de Rochemont, L. Pierre
• Primary Examiner(s): Toledo, Fernando L
• Assistant Examiner(s): Shamsuzzaman, Mohammed
• Application Number:
  US13/168,922
• Publication Number:
  US 20110316612A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,082 Days
• Field of Search: 257/724, 257/664, 257/300, 257/14, 257/254, 257/296, 257/330, 361268-270, 363/17, 336/200, 428/615, 327/372, 343/873
• US Class Current: 257/724
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 17/06 with core substantially closed in itself, e.g. toroid
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 27/2804 Printed windings
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 30/16 Toroidal transformers
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 23/642 Capacitive arrangements H01L23/49589, H01L23/645, H01L23/647, H01L23/66 take precedence; capacitive effects between wiring layers on the semiconductor body H01L23/5222
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 23/645 Inductive arrangements H01L23/647, H01L23/66 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 25/16 the devices being of types provided for in two or more different main groups of groups H01L27/00 - H01L33/00, or in a single subclass of H10K, H10N, e.g. forming hybrid circuits
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/0629 in combination with diodes, or resistors, or capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/1604 Amorphous materials
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/4238 characterised by the surface lay-out
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/7395 Vertical transistors, e.g. vertical IGBT
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/7803 structurally associated with at least one other device assemblies H01L25/00; integrated circuits H01L27/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/7804 the other device being a pn-junction diode
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/00 Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/0002 Not covered by any one of groups H01L24/00, H01L24/00 and H01L2224/00
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 3/28 using discharge tubes with control electrode or semiconductor devices with control electrode to produce the intermediate ac
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/12493 Composite; i.e., plural, adjacent, spatially distinct metal components [e.g., layers, joint, etc.]

Abstract

A monolithic power switch provides a semiconductor layer, a three dimensional FET formed in the semiconductor layer to modulate currents through the semiconductor layer, and a toroidal inductor with a ceramic magnetic core formed on the semiconductor layer around the FET and having a first winding connected to the FET.

Claims

1. A monolithic power management module, comprising:

a first electrode;

a semiconductor layer disposed upon the first electrode;

a vertical power FET formed in the semiconductor layer to modulate currents through the semiconductor layer;

the FET having a second electrode disposed upon a surface of the semiconductor layer opposing the first electrode, and an insulated gate electrode inserted between the semiconductor layer and the first electrode; and

a toroidal inductor with a ceramic magnetic core formed on the semiconductor layer around the FET and the inductor having a first winding around the core and connected to the FET second electrode;

wherein windings of the toroidal inductor coil are in contact with an adjacent dielectric and comprise thin layers of electrical conductivity material that envelopes a mechanical constraining member including a low-expansion elemental metal having a measured hardness greater than 2×

the measured hardness of the electrical conductivity material and a coefficient of thermal expansion that is within 25% of the coefficient of thermal expansion of the adjacent dielectric; and

wherein the power FET includes an elongated gate electrode comprising a conductor that forms a resonant transmission line by configuring the conductor to form a serpentine electrode that contains a capacitive element determined by the charge collected beneath the gate, a resistive element determined by the conductor, length and cross-sectional area of the conductor used to form the serpentine gate electrode, and an inductive element formed by the half-turns that loop the serpentine winding back upon itself.

2. The module of claim 1 that is formed upon a semiconductor chip carrier.

3. The module of claim 2, wherein the semiconductor chip carrier includes passive ceramic components formed thereon that are electrically connected to the module.

4. The module of claim 2, further comprising:

a diode formed in the semiconductor layer peripherally to the toroidal inductor and connected to rectify current from the inductor;

and,

a capacitor having a ceramic dielectric formed on the semiconductor layer that is electrically connected to the diode.

5. The module of claim 2, further comprising clock circuitry formed on the chip carrier and comprising an oscillator coil formed on an amorphous silica layer, wherein the oscillator coil holds its inductance value to within 1% over the range of standard operating temperatures.

6. The module of claim 5, wherein the clock circuitry includes a switching element formed in the carrier for controlling a self-resonance frequency of the clock circuitry'"'"'s oscillator coil.

7. The module of claim 1, wherein the power FET is a double-diffused MOSFET, a MUCHFET, V-groove MOSFET, a truncated V-groove MOSFET, a vertically configured HETFET, a MODFET, or an insulated gate bipolar transistor.

8. The module of claim 1, wherein the power FET includes a an elongated gate electrode having a gate width to gate length ratio that is equal to or exceeds 100, or alternatively 10⁶ to reduce its On-Resistance.

9. The module of claim 1, wherein the elongated gate electrode meanders over an area of the substrate located within a central opening of the toroidal inductor.

10. The insulated gate electrode of claim 1, wherein the insulator comprises amorphous silica.

11. The switch of claim 1, wherein the magnetic core consists of a ferrite electroceramic comprising cobalt (Co), nickel (Ni), zinc (Zn), copper (Cu), vanadium (V), magnesium (Mg), or lithium (Li).

12. The switch of claim 1, wherein the magnetic core consists of a hexaferrite electroceramic comprising magnesium (Mg), calcium (Ca), strontium (Sr), barium (Ba), scandium (Sc), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), iron (Fe), bismuth (Bi), yttrium (Y), or aluminum (Al).

13. The switch of claim 1, wherein the magnetic core consists of a garnet electroceramic comprising calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), iron (Fe), strontium (Sr), scandium (Sc), manganese (Mn), barium (Ba), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), aluminum (Al), bismuth (Hi), chromium (Cr), vanadium (V), zirconium (Zr), titanium (Ti), silicon (Si), Yttrium (Y), cobalt (Co), Gadolinium (Gd), neodymium (Nd), or holmium (Ho).

14. The magnetic core of claim 1 that consists of a compositionally complex magnetic material, wherein 100% of the grains have uniform grain size diameter that is less than 1.5×

the mean grain size diameter.

15. The magnetic core of claim 14, wherein the mean grain size diameter is less than 5 μ

m, preferably having grain size in the range of 1 μ

m to 5 μ

m.

16. The switch of claim 1, wherein the toroidal inductor coil windings are interleaved within the windings of a transformer coil.

17. The transformer coil of claim 16, wherein a gap in the ceramic material comprising magnetic core is with ultra-low loss material, preferably amorphous silica material, to concentrate magnetic energy adjacent to at least one secondary coil winding and increase power coupling between the transformer'"'"'s primary coil and secondary coil windings.

18. The inductor coil of claim 1, wherein the electrically conductive material is a superconductor material.

19. The inductor coil of claim 1, wherein the mechanical constraining member is tungsten, molybdenum, kovar, or invar.