Texas Instruments Corporation

Medical University of South Carolina

Naveen Tipirneni

Sameer P Pendharkar

Jungwoo Joh

Chang Soo Suh

Dong Seup Lee

Qhalid Fareed

Grigory Simin

Rick L Wise

Michael Lueders

Vinod Adivarahan

Nicholas Stephen Dellas

M Asif Khan

Maik Peter Kaufmann

The present invention provides a capacitor having a first structure made of a metal layer and a second structure made of the same metal layer and a dielectric layer between the first and the second metal structure, wherein the dielectric layer has a relative permittivity greater than 4, in particular greater than 6. It also provides a monolithically integrated circuit including such a capacitor and optionally other components. A method of manufacturing such a capacitor is also provided.

Fringe capacitor, integrated circuit and manufacturing process for the fringe capacitor

In some examples, a gallium nitride (GaN)-based transistor, comprises a substrate; a GaN layer supported by the substrate; an aluminum nitride gallium (AlGaN) layer supported by the GaN layer; a p-doped GaN structure supported by the AlGaN layer; and multiple p-doped GaN blocks supported by the AlGaN layer, each of the multiple p-doped GaN blocks physically separated from the remaining multiple p-doped GaN blocks, wherein first and second contours of a two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) of the GaN-based transistor are at an interface of the AlGaN and GaN layers.

Gallium nitride (GaN) based transistor with multiple p-GaN blocks

A High Electron Mobility Transistor (HEMT) includes an active layer on a substrate, and a Group IIIA-N barrier layer on the active layer. An isolation region is through the barrier layer to provide at least one isolated active area including the barrier layer on the active layer. A gate is over the barrier layer. A drain includes at least one drain finger including a fingertip having a drain contact extending into the barrier layer to contact to the active layer and a source having a source contact extending into the barrier layer to contact to the active layer. The source forms a loop that encircles the drain. The isolation region includes a portion positioned between the source and drain contact so that there is a conduction barrier in a length direction between the drain contact of the fingertip and the source.

HEMT having conduction barrier between drain fingertip and source

A semiconductor device containing an enhancement mode GaN FET on a III-N layer stack includes a low-doped GaN layer, a barrier layer including aluminum over the low-doped GaN layer, a stressor layer including indium over the barrier layer, and a cap layer including aluminum over the stressor layer. A gate recess extends through the cap layer and the stressor layer, but not through the barrier layer. The semiconductor device is formed by forming the barrier layer with a high temperature MOCVD process, forming the stressor layer with a low temperature MOCVD process and forming the cap layer with a low temperature MOCVD process. The gate recess is formed by a two-step etch process including a first etch step to remove the cap layer, and a second etch step to remove the stressor layer.

Normally off III nitride transistor

One example provides an enhancement-mode High Electron Mobility Transistor (HEMT) includes a substrate, a Group IIIA-N active layer over the substrate, a Group IIIA-N barrier layer over the active layer, and at least one isolation region through the barrier layer to provide an isolated active area having the barrier layer on the active layer. A gate stack is located between source and drain contacts to the active layer. A tunnel diode in the gate stack includes an n-GaN layer on an InGaN layer on a p-GaN layer located on the barrier layer.

Group IIIA-N HEMT with a tunnel diode in the gate stack

An enhancement-mode High Electron Mobility Transistor (HEMT) includes a substrate, a Group IIIA-N active layer on the substrate, a Group IIIA-N barrier layer on the active layer, and at least one isolation region through the barrier layer to provide an isolated active area having the barrier layer on the active layer. A p-GaN layer is on the barrier layer. A tunnel diode in the gate stack includes an n-GaN layer on an InGaN layer on the p-GaN layer. A gate electrode is over the n-GaN layer. A drain having a drain contact is on the barrier layer to provide contact to the active layer, and a source having a source contact is on the barrier layer provides contact to the active layer. The tunnel diode provides a gate contact to eliminate the need to form a gate contact directly to the p-GaN layer.

A semiconductor device includes a GaN FET with an overvoltage clamping component electrically coupled to a drain node of the GaN FET and coupled in series to a voltage dropping component. The voltage dropping component is electrically coupled to a terminal which provides an off-state bias for the GaN FET. The overvoltage clamping component conducts insignificant current when a voltage at the drain node of the GaN FET is less than the breakdown voltage of the GaN FET and conducts significant current when the voltage rises above a safe voltage limit. The voltage dropping component is configured to provide a voltage drop which increases as current from the overvoltage clamping component increases. The semiconductor device is configured to turn on the GaN FET when the voltage drop across the voltage dropping component reaches a threshold value.

Avalanche energy handling capable III-nitride transistors

A semiconductor device has a substrate with a semiconductor material. The semiconductor device includes a field effect transistor in and on the semiconductor material. The field effect transistor has a gate dielectric layer over the semiconductor material of the semiconductor device, and a gate over the gate dielectric layer. The gate dielectric layer includes a layer of nitrogen-rich silicon nitride immediately over the region for the channel, and under the gate.

Silicon nitride process for reduction of threshold shift

A semiconductor device with a substrate, a low defect layer formed in a fixed position relative to the substrate, and a barrier layer comprising III-N semiconductor material formed on the low-defect layer and forming an electron gas in the low-defect layer. The device also has a source contact, a drain contact, and a gate contact for receiving a potential, the potential for adjusting a conductive path in the electron gas and between the source contact and the drain contact. Lastly, the device has a one-sided PN junction between the barrier layer and the substrate.

Isolated III-N semiconductor devices

A method of forming a semiconductor device includes a GaN FET with an overvoltage clamping component electrically coupled to a drain node of the GaN FET and coupled in series to a voltage dropping component. The voltage dropping component is electrically coupled to a terminal which provides an off-state bias for the GaN FET. The overvoltage clamping component has a breakdown voltage less than a breakdown voltage of the GaN FET. The voltage dropping component is formed to provide a voltage drop which increases as current from the overvoltage clamping component increases. The semiconductor device is configured to turn on the GaN FET when the voltage drop across the voltage dropping component reaches a threshold value.

Method of forming a semiconductor device having a GaNFET, an overvoltage clamping component, and a voltage dropping component

A semiconductor device containing a GaN FET has an isolating gate structure outside the channel area which is operable to block current in the two-dimensional electron gas between two regions of the semiconductor device. The isolating gate structure is formed concurrently with the gate of the GaN FET, and has a same structure as the gate.

III-nitride device and method having a gate isolating structure

A semiconductor device includes a depletion mode GaN FET and an integrated driver/cascode IC. The integrated driver/cascode IC includes an enhancement mode cascoded NMOS transistor which is connected in series to a source node of the GaN FET. The integrated driver/cascode IC further includes a driver circuit which conditions a gate input signal and provides a suitable digital waveform to a gate node of the cascoded NMOS transistor. The cascoded NMOS transistor and the driver circuit are formed on a same silicon substrate.

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Plano, TX, United States of America

Naveen Tipirneni