Electrical overstress protection using through-silicon-via (TSV)

Abstract

A semiconductor device formed on a substrate includes a first diode junction formation, a second diode junction formation, and at least one through-silicon-via (TSV), in which a cathode and an anode of the first diode are cross-connected to an anode and cathode of the second diode through the at least one TSV for achieving electrical robustness in through-silicon-via based integrated circuits, including photosensitive devices and circuits for signal processing applications.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0001]The present invention is generally directed to a semiconductor device that includes structures to protect the device from electrical overstress conditions. In particular, the present invention utilizes through-silicon-via (TSV) technology to create electrical overstress protections on the same semiconductor substrate for the semiconductor device.BACKGROUND INFORMATION[0002]Semiconductor devices, including PN junctions, typically conduct current in the forward direction and block current in the reverse direction. When operating in the forward direction, the PN junction is capable of conducting high current density (measured in terms of amperes per unit area), while maintaining relatively low power dissipation. However, when a high enough voltage is applied in the reverse direction, the PN junction could eventually reach avalanche breakdown, at which point it is no longer able to block currents in the reverse direction and a relative small current may condu...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

The present invention is about a semiconductor device that includes structures to protect it from electrical overstress conditions. The invention utilizes through-silicon-via (TSV) technology to create electrical overstress protections on the same semiconductor substrate as the semiconductor device. The invention provides bi-directional protection against electrostatic discharge (ESD) events for semiconductor devices such as photodiodes. The technical effect of the invention is to prevent damage to semiconductor devices during ESD events and to improve their reliability.

Problems solved by technology

However, when a high enough voltage is applied in the reverse direction, the PN junction could eventually reach avalanche breakdown, at which point it is no longer able to block currents in the reverse direction and a relative small current may conduct in the reverse direction.

This relative small current in the reverse direction may cause catastrophic failure within the PN junction.

However, if a reverse bias as high as the avalanche breakdown is applied, the photodiode may be permanently damaged and could operate erroneously.

The electrostatic discharge (ESD) effects commonly known to occur in electrical circuits may cause sudden and unexpected high voltage charges over semiconductor devices in both forward and reverse directions.

However, this approach may not be appropriate for semiconductor devices such as photodiodes situated in a photodiode array.

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