Medtronic, Inc.

Mark Blanchfield

Andreas A Fenner

Paul F Gerrish

Tyler Mueller

An overvoltage protection device is formed in a semiconductor substrate having a plurality of doped regions for forming semiconductor devices. The overvoltage protection device is adapted to draw current away from a device to be protected from excess voltage and has a switchable device having a terminal adapted to be coupled to a potential source of excess voltage and to the semiconductor substrate for drawing current away from the potential source of excess voltage when the switchable device is triggered, and for directing the current to the semiconductor substrate. A Zener diode is coupled to a second terminal of the switchable device to trigger the switchable device to a conducting state. The Zener diode is formed in the same doped region of the substrate as the trigger of the switchable device.

Growing community of inventors

Scottsdale, AZ, United States of America

Mark Blanchfield