Hall effect sensor

• US 9,709,639 B2
• Filed: 07/14/2015
• Issued: 07/18/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 07/14/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Tdk-Micronas Gmbh (TDK Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Albert-Ludwigs-Universitaet Freiburg, Tdk-Micronas Gmbh (TDK Corporation)
• Inventors: Sander, Christian, Paul, Oliver
• Primary Examiner(s): Assouad, Patrick
• Assistant Examiner(s): Pretlow, Demetrius
• Application Number:
  US14/798,887
• Publication Number:
  US 20160011281A1
• Time in Patent Office: 735 Days
• Field of Search: 324251, 3242072
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/077 Vertical Hall-effect devices
• CPC Class Codes: H10N 52/101 Semiconductor Hall-effect devices

Abstract

A Hall effect sensor with multiple Hall effect elements, each of the Hall effect elements having a first contact terminal, a second contact terminal, and a third contact terminal arranged along a straight line. The multiple Hall effect elements are electrically connected in series in a closed circuit. The second contact terminals of the Hall effect elements are supply voltage connections or Hall voltage pickoffs, and the applicable second contact terminal of the Hall effect element is a center contact of the Hall effect element. The Hall effect elements form two pairs, and the Hall effect elements of one pair each measure the same component of a magnetic field and an operating current is impressed on the series circuit in the two Hall effect elements of this one pair, and a supply voltage is applied to the Hall effect elements of the other pair.

Claims

1. A Hall effect sensor with a plurality of Hall effect elements, each of the Hall effect elements comprising:

a first contact terminal;

a second contact terminal; and

a third contact terminal, the first, second and third contact terminals of each Hall effect element being arranged linearly,

wherein the plurality of Hall effect elements are electrically connected in series in a closed circuit such that at least three Hall effect elements of the plurality of Hall effect elements have the first contact terminal connected to the third contact terminal of another of the at least three Hall effect elements, such that current flows in a single circular direction through the at least three Hall effect sensors,

wherein the second contact terminals of the Hall effect elements are supply voltage connections or Hall voltage pickoffs,

wherein the second contact terminal of each Hall effect element is a center contact of the Hall effect element,

wherein the Hall effect elements form two pairs, and the Hall effect elements of a first pair of the two pairs each measure a same component of a magnetic field,

wherein an operating current is impressed on the series circuit in the two Hall effect elements of the first pair, and

wherein a supply voltage is applied to the Hall effect elements of a second pair of the two pairs,

wherein the two second contact terminals of the first pair face each other along a first axis and the two second contact terminals of the second pair face each other along a second axis,

wherein the first pair of Hall effect elements are arranged along two first substantially parallel lines, and

wherein the second pair of Hall effect elements are arranged along two second substantially parallel lines, the two first parallel lines and the two second parallel lines being substantially perpendicular.

2. The Hall effect sensor according to claim 1, wherein each of the Hall effect elements is arranged along a side of a quadrilateral.

3. The Hall effect sensor according to claim 2, wherein the quadrilateral is a rectangular quadrilateral.

4. The Hall effect sensor according to claim 2, wherein the quadrilateral is a square.

5. The Hall effect sensor according to claim 1, wherein semiconductor switches are provided in electrical connecting lines between the Hall effect elements in order to change a direction of the current in at least one of the Hall effect elements.

6. The Hall effect sensor according to claim 1, wherein at least one semiconductor switch is connected in series in each of the electrical connecting lines implemented between two adjacent Hall effect elements of the plurality of Hall effect elements.

7. The Hall effect sensor according to claim 1, wherein direction of current of two Hall effect elements located opposite one another is opposite in a first circuit configuration in order to measure a first component of a magnetic field in the first configuration, and wherein, in a second circuit configuration, the direction of the current in the two Hall effect elements is the same.

8. The Hall effect sensor according to claim 1, wherein, in a second current configuration, the other two Hall effect elements located opposite one another have a mutually opposite current direction in order to measure a second component of a magnetic field.

9. The Hall effect sensor according to claim 1, wherein the Hall effect elements are implemented as vertical Hall plates.

10. The Hall effect sensor according to claim 1, wherein the Hall effect elements of at least one of the two pairs have the same structure.

11. The Hall effect sensor according to claim 1, wherein the Hall effect elements are arranged along four sides symmetrically about a common centroid, and wherein each of the Hall effect elements located opposite one another have a same spacing from the common centroid.

12. The Hall effect sensor according to claim 1, wherein an integrated circuit is provided, and wherein the circuit arrangement and the Hall effect elements are monolithically integrated into a common semiconductor body.

13. The Hall effect sensor according to claim 1, wherein each second contact terminal of the Hall effect elements of the first pair are Hall voltage pickoffs, and

wherein each second contact terminal of the Hall effect elements of the second pair are supply voltage connections.

14. The Hall effect sensor according to claim 1, wherein the first, second, and third contact terminals of each Hall effect element of the first pair of Hall effect elements are aligned in a plane along a first straight line,

wherein the first, second, and third contact terminals of each Hall effect element of the second pair of Hall effect elements are aligned in the plane along a second straight line, and

wherein the first straight line and the second straight line form a cross in the plane.

15. The Hall effect sensor according to claim 1, wherein all the terminals of each of the Hall effect elements are positioned on sides of a square in a plane.

16. The Hall effect sensor according to claim 14, wherein the second contact terminal of each of the Hall effect elements is equidistant from the center of the square.

17. The Hall effect sensor according to claim 1, wherein at least three Hall effect elements of the plurality of Hall effect elements have the operating current flowing through in a first direction, and wherein only one Hall effect element of the plurality of Hall effect elements has the operating current flowing through in a second direction, opposite the first direction.

18. The Hall effect sensor according to claim 1, further comprising:

a first set of switches; and

a second set of switches,

wherein the first set of switches being ON and the second set of switches being OFF defines a first sensing configuration,

wherein the first set of switches being OFF and the second set of switches being ON defines a second sensing configuration, and

wherein the first sensing configuration senses a first component of a magnetic field and the second sensing configuration senses a second component of the magnetic field.

20. The Hall effect sensor according to claim 1, wherein a first angle between the two first substantially parallel lines less than 20 degrees, and a second angle between each of the two first substantially parallel lines and the two second substantially parallel lines is in a range between 70 degrees and 110 degrees.

19. A Hall effect sensor with a plurality of Hall effect elements, each of the Hall effect elements comprising:

a first contact terminal;

a second contact terminal; and

a third contact terminal, the first, second and third contact terminals of each Hall effect element being arranged in a line,

wherein the plurality of Hall effect elements are electrically connected in series in a closed circuit such that the first contact terminals and the third contact terminals of individual Hall effect elements are connected to one another,

wherein the second contact terminals of the Hall effect elements are supply voltage connections or Hall voltage pickoffs,

wherein the second contact terminal of each Hall effect element is a center contact of the Hall effect element,

wherein the Hall effect elements form two pairs, a first pair of the two pairs measuring a first component of a magnetic field, a second pair of the two pairs measuring a second component of the magnetic field,

the Hall effect sensor further comprising;

a first set of switches; and

a second set of switches,

wherein the first set of switches being ON and the second set of switches being OFF defines a first sensing configuration,

wherein the first set of switches being OFF and the second set of switches being ON defines a second sensing configuration, and

wherein the first sensing configuration senses the first component of the magnetic field and the second sensing configuration senses the second component of the magnetic field.

21. A Hall effect sensor, comprising:

a first hall effect element, a second hall effect element, a third hall effect element, and a fourth hall effect element in a closed circuit, the second hall effect element and the fourth hall effect element forming a first pair, the first hall effect element and the third hall effect element forming a second pair, and the first hall effect element, the second hall effect element, the third hall effect element, and the fourth hall effect element being disposed on a semiconductor body in a plane;

the first, second, third and fourth hall effect element each comprising;

a first contact terminal, a second contact terminal, and a third contact terminal arranged in a line, the second contact terminal disposed between the first contact terminal and the third contact terminal,

wherein the two second contact terminals of the first pair are disposed along a horizontal axis and the two second contact terminals of the second pair are disposed along a vertical axis,

wherein the second and fourth Hall effect elements of the first pair each measure a same component of a magnetic field,

wherein an operating current is impressed on the closed circuit at the second contact terminals of the second and fourth Hall effect elements of the first pair, and

wherein a supply voltage is applied to the second contact terminals of the first and third Hall effect elements of the second pair,

wherein current in the closed circuit flows in a first direction through the fourth hall effect element and in a second direction through the second hall effect element, the first direction and the second direction being opposite to each other and being parallel to the vertical axis, and

wherein the current in the closed circuit flows in a third direction through the first hall effect element and in a fourth direction through the third hall effect element, the third direction and the fourth direction being parallel to each other and parallel to the horizontal axis.