General Semiconductor, Inc.

Other

General Instrument Corporation of Delaware

Gi, LLC

Lawrence LaTerza

Willem G Einthoven

Dennis Garbis

Joseph Y Chan

Gregory Zakaluk

Jack Eng

Gary Horsman

Danny Garbis

John Amato

Jun Wu

Ali Salih

John Latza

Reinhold Hirtz

Sandy Tan

John E Amato

A bi-directional transient voltage suppression device with symmetric current-voltage characteristics has a lower semiconductor layer of first conductivity type, an upper semiconductor layer of first conductivity type, and a middle semiconductor layer adjacent to and disposed between the lower and upper layers having a second opposite conductivity type, such that upper and lower p&minus;n junctions are formed. The middle layer has a net doping concentration that is highest at a midpoint between the junctions. Furthermore, the doping profile along a line normal to the lower, middle and upper layers is such that, within the middle layer the doping profile on one side of a centerplane of the middle layer mirrors the doping profile on an opposite side. In addition, an integral of the net doping concentration of the middle layer taken over the distance between the junctions is such that breakdown, when it occurs, is punch through breakdown, rather than avalanche breakdown.

Low-voltage punch-through bi-directional transient-voltage suppression devices and methods of making the same

A bi-directional transient voltage suppression device with symmetric current-voltage characteristics has a lower semiconductor layer of first conductivity type, an upper semiconductor layer of first conductivity type, and a middle semiconductor layer adjacent to and disposed between the lower and upper layers having a second opposite conductivity type, such that upper and lower p-n junctions are formed. The middle layer has a net doping concentration that is highest at a midpoint between the junctions. Furthermore, the doping profile along a line normal to the lower, middle and upper layers is such that, within the middle layer the doping profile on one side of a centerplane of the middle layer mirrors the doping profile on an opposite side. In addition, an integral of the net doping concentration of the middle layer taken over the distance between the junctions is such that breakdown, when it occurs, is punch through breakdown, rather than avalanche breakdown.

Low-voltage punch-through bi-directional transient-voltage suppression devices

Starting with a semiconductor wafer of known type including an internal, planar p-n junction parallel to major surfaces of the wafer, one of the wafer surfaces is covered with a masking layer of silicon nitride. A plurality of intersecting grooves are then sawed through the masking layer for forming a plurality of mesas having sloped walls with each mesa including a portion of the planar p-n junction having edges which intersect and are exposed by the mesa walls. The groove walls and exposed junction edges are glass encapsulated in a process including heating the wafer. The masking layers are then removed in a selective etching process not requiring a patterned etchant mask, and the now exposed silicon surfaces at the top of the mesas, as well as the opposite surface of the wafer, are metal plated. The wafer is then diced along planes through the grooves for providing individual chips each having a glass passivated mesa thereon.

Semiconductor chips having a mesa structure provided by sawing

A high voltage silicon rectifier includes a substrate portion and an epitaxial mesa portion that is a frustrum of a pyramid with a substantially square cross section and side walls that make a forty five degree angle with the substrate portion. The mesa portion includes three germanium doped layers that introduce strain to speed up recombination of charge carriers. The topography of the base region of the rectifier has a high-low junction that includes a central portion that is deeper in the mesa than the germanium-doped layers and an edge portion that is shallower in the mesa than the germanium-doped layers and forms a positive bevel angle with the tapered side walls of the mesa,

High voltage silicon diode with optimum placement of silicon-germanium

Significant reductions in the cost of fabrication of epitaxial semiconductor devices without sacrifice of functional characteristics is achieved by eliminating the conventional but costly polishing procedure, instead subjecting the substrate to grinding, cleaning and etching processes in which the grinding removes material from the surface to a depth of at least 65 microns and the etching further removes material to a depth of about 6-10 microns, the grinding preferably being carried out in two steps, the first being a coarse step and the second being a fine step, with the rotated grinding elements dwelling at their respective last grinding positions for a short period of time. The result is the equivalent of the prior art polishing procedure which took considerably longer to carry out and which therefore was much more costly. Complementing this grinding procedure is an improved and cost effective epitaxial process utilizing a unique two-step hydrochloric gas high temperature etch and a faster growth rate process with shorter cycle steps. In addition, oxygen control and 'gettering' capabilities result in a total process improving the economics of formation of epitaxial semiconductor devices.

Low cost method of fabricating epitaxial semiconductor devices

An all epitaxial process performed entirely in a CVD reactor is employed to grow heavily doped layer on lightly doped layer on a heavily doped substrate, eliminating the need for separate diffusion, even for high impurity concentrations. The process starts with a heavily doped silicon substrate of carrier concentration typically greater than 1.times.10.sup.19 per cm.sup.3. To minimize outdiffusion, the substrate is 'capped' by growing very thin and heavily doped silicon layers which are depleted by hydrogen purges. A first epitaxial layer is grown over the 'capped' substrate. This layer is relatively lightly doped, having a resistivity of more than 200 ohm.cm. A second epitaxial layer is then grown over the first epitaxial layer. The second epitaxial layer has a polarity opposite to that of the substrate and is heavily doped to a resistivity of less than 0.005 ohm cm.

Method for fabricating a multilayer epitaxial structure

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Lawrence LaTerza