Hall sensor and compensation method for offset caused by temperature distribution in hall sensor

• US 9,945,912 B2
• Filed: 11/17/2015
• Issued: 04/17/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 11/27/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ablic Inc. (MinebeaMitsumi Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Seiko Instruments Incorporated (Seiko Group)
• Inventors: Hioka, Takaaki, Akino, Masaru
• Primary Examiner(s): Hollington, Jermele M
• Assistant Examiner(s): Rodriguez, Douglas X
• Application Number:
  US14/943,509
• Publication Number:
  US 20160154066A1
• Time in Patent Office: 882 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/0017 Means for compensating offset magnetic fields or the magnetic flux to be measured; Means for generating calibration magnetic fields
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/007 Environmental aspects, e.g. temperature variations, radiation, stray fields G01R33/025 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/07 Hall effect devices

Abstract

In a Hall sensor in which a Hall element and elements serving as heat sources out of components of a circuit for driving the Hall element are arranged close to each other on a silicon substrate, two directions of control currents by spinning current for the Hall element are selected in a vector manner based on signals from temperature sensors arranged close to a periphery of the Hall element, thereby enabling the elimination of a magnetic offset caused by heat generation of the heat sources.

Claims

1. A Hall sensor, comprising:

a semiconductor substrate;

a Hall element arranged on the semiconductor substrate, the Hall element having four sides and four vertices;

two pairs of terminals arranged on the Hall element, the two pairs of terminals serving both as control current input terminals and Hall voltage output terminals;

an element arranged on the semiconductor substrate outside the Hall element, the element serving as a heat source; and

a plurality of temperature sensors arranged on the semiconductor substrate outside the Hall element, the plurality of temperature sensors being different from the element, and respective ones of the plurality of temperature sensors being arranged along respective ones of the four sides or in a vicinity of respective ones of the four vertices of the Hall element,

wherein the two pairs of terminals are arranged so that one of the two pairs of terminals has a first Hall element control current flowing therebetween and another of the two pairs of terminals has a second Hall element control current flowing therebetween, and the first Hall element control current and the second Hall element control current cross each other as vectors, and

wherein a vector sum of the first Hall element control current and the second Hall element control current is parallel to a straight line connecting between a maximum value and a minimum value of temperatures measured by the plurality of temperature sensors.

2. A Hall sensor according to claim 1, wherein the Hall element has a square shape in plan view.

3. A Hall sensor according to claim 1, wherein the Hall element has a cross shape in plan view.

4. A compensation method for an offset caused by a temperature of a Hall sensor,

the Hall sensor comprising:

a semiconductor substrate;

a Hall element arranged on the semiconductor substrate, the Hall element having four sides and four vertices;

two pairs of terminals arranged on the Hall element, the two pairs of terminals serving both as control current input terminals and Hall voltage output terminals;

an element arranged on the semiconductor substrate outside the Hall element, the element serving as a heat source; and

a plurality of temperature sensors arranged on the semiconductor substrate outside the Hall element, the plurality of temperature sensors being different from the element, and respective ones of the plurality of temperature sensors being arranged along respective ones of the four sides or in a vicinity of respective ones of the four vertices of the Hall element,

one of the two pairs of terminals having a first Hall element control current flowing therebetween and another of the two pairs of terminals having a second Hall element control current flowing therebetween, the first Hall element control current and the second Hall element control current crossing each other as vectors,

the compensation method comprising;

setting the first Hall element control current and the second Hall element control current so that a vector sum of the first Hall element control current and the second Hall element control current is parallel with a straight line connecting between a maximum value and a minimum value out of temperatures measured by the plurality of temperature sensors, to thereby eliminate the offset.

5. A Hall sensor, comprising:

a semiconductor substrate;

a Hall element arranged on the semiconductor substrate, the Hall element having four axes of symmetry in plan view;

two pairs of terminals arranged on the Hall element, the two pairs of terminals serving both as control current input terminals and Hall voltage output terminals;

an element arranged on the semiconductor substrate outside the Hall element, the element serving as a heat source; and

a plurality of temperature sensors arranged on the semiconductor substrate around the outside of the Hall element, the plurality of temperature sensors being different from the element serving as a heat source, and the plurality of temperature sensors collectively having four axes of symmetry in plan view,

wherein the two pairs of terminals are arranged so that one of the two pairs of terminals has a first Hall element control current flowing therebetween and another of the two pairs of terminals has a second Hall element control current flowing therebetween, and the first Hall element control current and the second Hall element control current cross each other as vectors, and

wherein a vector sum of the first Hall element control current and the second Hall element control current is parallel to a straight line connecting between a maximum value and a minimum value from among temperatures measured by the plurality of temperature sensors.

6. A Hall sensor according to claim 5;

wherein the Hall element has a square shape in plan view.

7. A Hall sensor according to claim 5;

wherein the Hall element has a cross shape in plan view.