Optocoupler having a semiconductor diode for each voltage source and a tunnel diode formed between each two successive voltage sources

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9972735-B2
Application number	US-201615180753-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 13, 2016
Priority date	Jun 12, 2015
Publication date	May 15, 2018
Grant date	May 15, 2018

Abstract

An optocoupler having a transmitter module and a receiver module that are galvanically isolated from each other and optically coupled with one another and are integrated in a common housing. The receiver module has a voltage source that has a number N of partial voltage sources mutually connected in series and constructed as semiconductor diodes. Each of the partial voltage sources has a semiconductor diode having a p-n junction, and the partial source voltages of the individual partial voltage sources each deviate by less than 20% from one another. Between each two successive partial voltage sources, a tunnel diode is formed and the partial voltage sources and the tunnel diodes are monolithically integrated together and jointly form a first stack having a top surface and a bottom surface, and the number N of the partial voltage sources is greater than or equal to three.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An optocoupler comprising:
a transmitter module; and
a receiver module, the transmitter module and the receiver module being galvanically isolated from each other and optically coupled with one another and integrated in a common housing, the receiver module comprising a plurality of N partial voltage sources mutually series-connected and constructed as semiconductor diodes,
wherein each of the partial voltage sources have a semiconductor diode having a p-n junction, a p-doped absorption layer, and an n-absorption layer,
wherein the n-absorption layer is passivated by an n-doped passivation layer having a wider band gap than a band gap of the n-absorption layer, the partial source voltages of the individual partial voltage sources deviating less than 20% from each other,
wherein, between each two successive partial voltage sources, a tunnel diode is formed,
wherein the tunnel diode has a plurality of semiconductor layers with a wider band gap than a band gap of the p/n absorption layers and the semiconductor layers having the wider band gap in each case are formed of a material with modified stoichiometry and/or other elemental composition than the p/n absorption layers of the semiconductor diode,
wherein the partial voltage sources and the tunnel diodes are monolithically integrated together and jointly form a first stack having a top surface and a bottom surface,
wherein the number N of the partial voltage sources is greater than or equal to three,
wherein on the first stack, light is incident on a surface of the top surface of the first stack and a size of the illuminated top surface on the stack surface essentially or at least corresponds to a size of the surface of the first stack on the top surface,
wherein the first stack has a total thickness of less than 12 microns,
wherein at 300 K, the first stack has a source voltage of greater than 3 volts, provided that the first stack is irradiated with light,
wherein, in a light incidence direction from a top surface of the first stack towards a bottom surface of the stack, a total thickness of the p/n absorption layers of a semiconductor diode increases from the top diode toward the lowermost diode and each p-absorption layer of the semiconductor diode is passivated by a p-doped passivation layer with a greater band gap than a band gap of the p-absorption layer and
wherein a voltage source near a bottom side of the stack has a circumferential shoulder-like edge.

2. The optocoupler according to claim 1 , wherein the partial source voltages of the partial voltage sources of the receiver module deviate by less than 10% from one another.

3. The optocoupler according to claim 1 , wherein the semiconductor diodes of the receiver module each are formed of substantially the same semiconductor material.

4. The optocoupler according to claim 1 , wherein the first stack is disposed on a substrate and wherein the substrate comprises a semiconductor material.

5. The optocoupler according to claim 1 , wherein the first stack has a base area smaller than 2 mm 2 or smaller than 1 mm 2 .

6. The optocoupler according to claim 1 , wherein, on the top surface of the first stack of the receiver module, a first voltage terminal is formed as a circumferential metal contact in a vicinity of an edge or as a single contact surface on the edge.

7. The optocoupler according to claim 1 , wherein on a bottom surface of the first stack of the receiver module, a second voltage terminal is formed.

8. The optocoupler according to claim 7 , wherein the second voltage terminal of the receiver module is formed by the substrate.

9. The optocoupler according to claim 1 , wherein in the receiver module, a second stack is formed, wherein the first stack and the second stack are arranged side by side on a common carrier, and wherein the first and second stacks are connected to one another in series so that a source voltage of the first stack and a source voltage of the second stack are added together.

10. The optocoupler according to claim 1 , wherein, between the p-absorption layer and the n-absorption layer of each diode of the receiver module, an intrinsic layer is formed.

11. The optocoupler according to claim 1 , wherein the semiconductor material and/or the substrate of the receiver module is formed of III-V materials.

12. The optocoupler according to claim 1 , wherein the substrate of the receiver module comprises germanium or gallium arsenide.

13. The optocoupler according to claim 1 , wherein an evaluation circuit is integrated in the housing and the voltage source is in electrical operative connection with the evaluation circuit.

14. The optocoupler according to claim 1 , wherein, below the lowermost semiconductor diode of the stack of the receiver module, a semiconductor mirror is formed.

15. The optocoupler according to claim 1 , wherein the semiconductor layers of the stack of the receiver module comprise arsenide-containing and phosphide-containing layers.

16. The optocoupler according to claim 1 , wherein a border of the edge is spaced apart by at least 5 microns and maximally 500 microns from the immediately adjoining lateral surface of the stack.

Assignees

• Azur Space Solar Power Gmbh

Inventors

• Guter Wolfgang
• Fuhrmann Daniel
• Khorenko Victor

Classifications

• H10W74/137

  the encapsulations being directly on the semiconductor body (H10W74/134 takes precedence) · CPC title

• H10W90/00 Primary

  Package configurations · CPC title

• H04B10/40

  Transceivers · CPC title

• Y02E10/544

  Solar cells from Group III-V materials · CPC title

• H01L23/3171

  Electricity · mapped topic