Vertical SiC MOSFET

US11164971B2 · US · B2

Patent metadata
FieldValue
Publication numberUS-11164971-B2
Application numberUS-201716086212-A
CountryUS
Kind codeB2
Filing dateJan 30, 2017
Priority dateMar 31, 2016
Publication dateNov 2, 2021
Grant dateNov 2, 2021

How to read this patent

A practical reading order for non-experts. Skip the full description unless you need deep technical detail.

  1. Title

    What the patent document calls the invention.

  2. Abstract

    A short plain-language summary of the technical disclosure.

  3. Assignees and inventors

    Who owns or filed the patent and who is credited as inventor.

  4. Key dates

    Filing, priority, publication, and grant dates set the timeline.

  5. First independent claim

    The legal scope of protection — read this for what is actually claimed.

  6. CPC / IPC classifications

    Technology tags used to group this patent with similar filings.

  7. Citations and related patents

    Prior art links and similar publications in this corpus.

Abstract

Official abstract text for this publication.

A vertical SiC MOSFET having a source terminal, a drain terminal, and a gate region, as well as an epitaxial layer disposed between the source terminal and the drain terminal and having a doping of a first type, is furnished, a horizontally extending intermediate layer, which has regions having a doping of a second type different from the doping of a first type, being embedded into the epitaxial layer. The vertical SiC MOSFET is notable for the fact that at least the regions having doping of a second type are electrically conductively connected to the source terminal. The gate region can be disposed in a gate trench.

First claim

Opening claim text (preview).

What is claimed is: 1. A vertical SiC MOSFET, comprising: a source terminal; a drain terminal; a gate region; an epitaxial layer disposed between the source terminal and the drain terminal and having a doping of a first type; and a horizontally extending intermediate layer that is embedded into the epitaxial layer to divide the epitaxial layer into an upper region facing the source terminal and a lower region facing the drain terminal, wherein the intermediate layer includes second-doping-type regions having a doping of a second type different from the doping of the first type, the regions being embedded into the epitaxial layer, wherein at least the regions having doping of the second type are electrically conductively connected to the source terminal, wherein the upper region and the lower region have different doping concentrations, and properties of the MOSFET are adjusted by selecting the doping concentrations of the upper region and the lower region. 2. The vertical SiC MOSFET as recited in claim 1 , wherein the intermediate layer includes first-doping-type regions and the second-doping-type regions. 3. The vertical SiC MOSFET as recited in claim 2 , wherein: the first-doping-type regions of the intermediate layer are adjoined vertically at least one of in a direction of the source terminal and in a direction of the drain terminal by transition regions having a heavier doping of the first type as compared with the epitaxial layer, and the epitaxial layer is at least in part adjacent to the second-doping-type regions of the intermediate layer. 4. The vertical SiC MOSFET as recited in claim 2 , wherein the first-doping-type regions of the intermediate layer include one of a double-funnel-shaped profile and an hourglass-shaped profile. 5. The vertical SiC MOSFET as recited in claim 1 , wherein the second-doping-type regions are not completely cleared out when a voltage less than or equal to a blocking voltage of the SiC MOSFET is applied such that quasi-neutral areas are still present in the second-doping-type regions even after application of the blocking voltage. 6. The vertical SiC MOSFET as recited in claim 1 , wherein the intermediate layer is disposed entirely below the gate region such that the intermediate layer is disposed vertically between the gate region and the drain terminal. 7. The vertical SiC MOSFET as recited in claim 1 , wherein the intermediate layer and the epitaxial layer functionally constitute a junction field effect transistor. 8. The vertical SiC MOSFET as recited in claim 7 , wherein a pinch voltage of the junction field effect transistor is in the range between 1 V and 50% of a breakdown voltage of the SiC MOSFET. 9. The vertical SiC MOSFET as recited in claim 7 , wherein a channel of the junction field effect transistor and a channel of the MOSFET are disposed vertically one above another. 10. The vertical SiC MOSFET as recited in claim 7 , wherein the junction field effect transistor is connected electrically in series with the MOSFET. 11. The vertical SiC MOSFET as recited in claim 1 , further comprising: a transition layer having heavier doping of the first type as compared with the epitaxial layer, the transition layer vertically adjoining the intermediate layer in at least one of a direction of the source terminal and in a direction of the drain terminal. 12. The vertical SiC MOSFET as recited in claim 1 , further comprising: a transition layer having heavier doping of the first type as compared with the epitaxial layer, the transition layer vertically adjoining the epitaxial layer in a direction of the source terminal. 13. The vertical SiC MOSFET as recited in claim 1 , wherein the upper region, disposed between the source terminal and the intermediate layer, of the epitaxial layer has heavier doping of the first type than the lower region, disposed between the intermediate layer and the drain terminal, of the epitaxial layer. 14. The vertical SiC MOSFET as recited in claim 13 , wherein the heavier doping of the first type that is heavier by a factor of 2 to 4. 15. A control device for a motor vehicle, comprising: a vertical SiC MOSFET, the MOSFET including: a source terminal; a drain terminal; a gate region; an epitaxial layer disposed between the source terminal and the drain terminal and having a doping of a first type; and a horizontally extending intermediate layer that is embedded into the epitaxial layer to divide the epitaxial layer into an upper region facing the source terminal and a lower region facing the drain terminal, wherein the intermediate layer includes second-doping-type regions having a doping of a second type different from the doping of the first type, the regions being embedded into the epitaxial layer, wherein at least the regions having doping of the second type are electrically conductively connected to the source terminal, wherein the upper region and the lower region have different doping concentrations, and properties of the MOSFET are adjusted by selecting the doping concentrations of the upper region and the lower region.

Assignees

Inventors

Classifications

  • characterised by the integration of at least one component covered by groups H10D12/00 or H10D30/00 with at least one component covered by groups H10D10/00 or H10D18/00, e.g. integration of IGFETs with BJTs · CPC title

  • Silicon carbide · CPC title

  • Multiple RESURF structures, e.g. double RESURF or 3D-RESURF structures · CPC title

  • Vertical DMOS [VDMOS] FETs · CPC title

  • Vertical FETs having PN junction gate electrodes (Vertical SIT H10D30/202) · CPC title

Patent family

Related publications grouped by family.

External sources

Frequently asked questions

Answers are generated from the same data shown on this page.

What does patent US11164971B2 cover?
A vertical SiC MOSFET having a source terminal, a drain terminal, and a gate region, as well as an epitaxial layer disposed between the source terminal and the drain terminal and having a doping of a first type, is furnished, a horizontally extending intermediate layer, which has regions having a doping of a second type different from the doping of a first type, being embedded into the epitaxia…
Who is the assignee on this patent?
Bosch Gmbh Robert
What technology area does this patent fall under?
Primary CPC classification H10D30/63. Mapped technology areas include Electricity.
When was this patent published?
Publication date Tue Nov 02 2021 00:00:00 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time) (B2). Legal status and post-grant events are not shown on this page.
What related patents are in patentsdb?
We list 2 related publications on this page (citations in our corpus or others sharing the same primary CPC).