Gateless Switch with Capacitively-Coupled Contacts

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016359031-A1
Application number	US-201615137772-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Apr 25, 2016
Priority date	Jan 6, 2009
Publication date	Dec 8, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

A switch includes an input contact and an output contact to a conducting channel. At least one of the input and output contacts is capacitively coupled to the conducting channel. A control contact is located outside of a region between the input and output contacts, and can be used to adjust the switch between on and off operating states. The switch can be implemented as a radio frequency switch in a circuit.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A switch, comprising:
a semiconductor structure including a conducting channel; an input contact to the conducting channel located on a surface of the semiconductor structure; an output contact to the conducting channel located on the surface of the semiconductor structure, the output contact separated from the input contact by a planar portion of the surface of the semiconductor structure defining a flat input-output region, wherein at least one of the input contact or the output contact is capacitively coupled to the conducting channel; and at least one control contact located outside of the input-output region formed between the input contact and the output contact.

2 . The switch of claim 1 , wherein the at least one control contact is located on the surface of the semiconductor structure and is capacitively coupled to the conducting channel.

3 . The switch of claim 1 , wherein the at least one control contact includes a first control contact located adjacent to the input contact and a second control contact located adjacent to the output contact, both the first control contact and the second control contact separated from each other by the input contact and the output contact, wherein both the first control contact and the second control contact are located outside of the input-output region formed between the input contact and the output contact.

4 . The switch of claim 1 , the semiconductor structure further comprising:
a barrier layer comprising a wide band gap, wherein the input contact and the output contact are located over the barrier layer; and a buffer layer comprising a band gap narrower than the barrier layer, wherein the conducting channel is formed at an interface of the barrier layer and the buffer layer.

5 . The switch of claim 4 , the semiconductor structure further comprising an insulating layer located over the barrier layer, wherein the input contact and the output contact are located over the insulating layer.

6 . The switch of claim 1 , the semiconductor structure further comprising an insulating layer located in the input-output region, wherein the insulating layer contacts the input contact and the output contact.

7 . A circuit, comprising:
a radio frequency (RF) switch including:
a semiconductor structure including a conducting channel;
an input contact to the conducting channel located on a surface of the semiconductor structure;
an output contact to the conducting channel located on the surface of the semiconductor structure, the output contact separated from the input contact by a continuous portion of the surface of the semiconductor structure extending between the input contact and the output contact, defining an input-output region without any semiconductor structure formed thereon, wherein at least one of the input contact or the output contact is capacitively coupled to the conducting channel; and
at least one control contact to control one of the input contact and the output contact that is located outside of the input-output region;
a RF input electrically connected to the input contact; a RF output electrically connected to the output contact; and a RF control circuit electrically connected to the at least one control contact.

8 . The circuit of claim 7 , wherein the at least one control contact is located on the surface of the semiconductor structure and includes a first control contact located adjacent to the input contact and a second control contact located adjacent to the output contact, both the first control contact and the second control contact separated from each other by the input contact and the output contact, wherein both the first control contact and the second control contact are located outside of the input-output region formed between the input contact and the output contact, and wherein the first control contact and the second control contact each forms a Schottky-type contact to the conducting channel.

9 . The circuit of claim 7 , wherein the at least one control contact is located beneath the conducting channel, and wherein the at least one control contact forms a Schottky-type contact to the conducting channel.

10 . The circuit of claim 7 , further comprising a dielectric layer formed between the conducting channel and the input contact, the output contact, the input-output region, and the at least one control contact.

11 . The circuit of claim 10 , wherein the at least one control contact forms a metal-insulator-semiconductor structure with the conducting channel.

12 . The circuit of claim 10 , wherein at least one of the input contact and the output contact forms a metal-insulator-semiconductor structure with the conducting channel.

13 . The circuit of claim 7 , further comprising a first depletion region and a second depletion region in the conducting channel, wherein the first depletion region is in vertical alignment with the input contact and the second depletion region is in vertical alignment with the output contact.

14 . The circuit of claim 7 , further comprising a low conducting layer formed between the input contact, the output contact and the conducting channel, wherein the low conducting layer extends underneath all of the input contact and the output contact, including all of the input-output region.

15 . The circuit of claim 14 , further comprising a depletion region in the conducting channel that is substantially coincident with the input contact, the output contact and the input-output region, wherein the depletion region extends continuously from slightly beyond a perimeter of the input contact to slight beyond a perimeter of the output contact.

16 . The circuit of claim 14 , wherein the low conducting layer extends along the surface of the semiconductor structure underneath each of the input contact and the output contact beyond perimeters of each contact, wherein the low conducting layer contacts a portion of a side of the at least one control contact.

17 . The circuit of claim 14 , wherein the low conducting layer extends along the surface of the semiconductor structure over all of the conducting channel, wherein the low conducting layer extends underneath each of the input contact, the output contact, and the at least one control contact, beyond perimeters of each contact.

18 . A circuit, comprising:
a radio frequency (RF) switch including:
a semiconductor structure including a conducting channel;
an input contact to the conducting channel located on a surface of the semiconductor structure;
an output contact to the conducting channel located on the surface of the semiconductor structure, the output contact separated from the input contact by a portion of the surface of the semiconductor structure extending between the input contact and the output contact, defining an input-output region without any semiconductor structure formed thereon, wherein at least one of the input contact or the output contact is capacitively coupled to the conducting channel;
an input control contact to the input contact; and
an output control contact to the output contact, wherein both the input control contact and the output control contact are separated from each other by the input contact and the output contact, and wherein both the input control contact and the output control contact are located outside of the input-output region formed between the input contact and the output contact;
a RF input electrically connected to the input contact; a RF output electrically connected to the output contact; and a RF control

Assignees

• Sensor Electronic Tech Inc

Inventors

• Simin Grigory
• Shur Michael
• Gaska Remigijus

Classifications

• H10W44/216

  Waveguides, e.g. strip lines · CPC title

• H10W44/20

  at high-frequency [HF] or radio frequency [RF] · CPC title

• H10D84/01

  Manufacture or treatment · CPC title

• H10D62/8503

  Nitride Group III-V materials, e.g. AlN or GaN · CPC title

• H10D62/126

  Top-view geometrical layouts of the regions or the junctions · CPC title