Short-circuit semiconductor device and method of operating the same

Abstract

A short-circuit semiconductor device (15, 22, 29, 34, 40, 45, 49, 52, 56, 59, 62, 66, 70, 72) comprises a semiconductor body (16), wherein a back base region (6) of a first conductivity type, an inner region (7) of a second conductivity type complementary to the first conductivity type and a front base region (8) of the first conductivity type are arranged. The back base region (6) is conductively connected to a back electrode (11), and the back electrode has a back electrode width (W ER ), and the front base region (8) is electrically connected to the front electrode (10), and the front electrode has a front electrode width (W EV ), wherein at least one front contact structure (17) is embedded in the front base region and is at least partially covered by the front electrode (10), the front contact structure having a front contact structure width (W SV ), and / or at least one back contact structure (31) is embedded in the back base region and at least partially covered by the back electrode, the back contact structure having a back contact structure width (W SR ). The connection structure is designed to be connected in dependence on an input connection signal and to establish an irreversible, low-resistance connection between two electrodes at one time. The ratio of the width of the front connection structure to the width of the front electrode and the ratio of the width of the back connection structure to the width of the back electrode are respectively less than 1. The present invention also relates to a method for operating such a short-circuit semiconductor device (15, 22, 29, 34, 40, 45, 49, 52, 56, 59, 62, 66, 70, 72).

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to a short-circuit semiconductor component according to the preamble of claim 1 and to a method for operating such a short-circuit semiconductor component. Background Art

[0002] After certain fault events or fault situations, for example in converter devices, all components and in particular power semiconductors can be damaged by excessively high short-circuit currents or overload currents, which can be up to several 100 kA). In order to reliably avoid damage to components and in particular semiconductor devices in the device, it is known to use various protection devices.

[0003] In the event of a fault, a limited, permanent low-resistance connection (short circuit) can be generated, for example, by a safety switch in the form of a short-circuiting device. In this case, the protection device can be triggered once and after a successful triggering, a permanent short-circuit state can be maintained by an electrical or optical triggering signal.

[0004] For example, DE 10323220 B4 discloses a short-circuit circuit for a faulty partial inverter, in which an electronic semiconductor device either accepts the short-circuit current or is controlled in dependence on the short-circuit current in the event of a fault, and is then permanently alloyed. As an electronic semiconductor device, an active semiconductor switch is proposed, which can be designed as a conventional thyristor in particular. In the event of a fault, the thyristor is triggered, and the short-circuit current flowing through the thyristor then causes local overheating of the semiconductor material, which damages the short-circuit thyristor. After this, the short-circuit thyristor forms a permanent short circuit. The contact of the short-circuit thyristor is designed in a short-circuit-resistant manner so that an arc is not formed in the short-circuit thyristor due to the high short-circuit current. For this purpose, among other aspects, a pressure contact is proposed.

[0005] DE 10333798 A1 also describes a method for short-circuiting a faulty partial inverter, in which, in the event of a fault, a current-carrying power semiconductor switch, designed here as an IGBT, is briefly switched on in such a way that it is permanently alloyed. In order to ensure reliable alloying of the semiconductor switch, various methods are proposed: 1. increasing the gate-emitter voltage of the power semiconductor switch; 2. switching on the power semiconductor switch and then quickly switching it off at high currents; 3. switching on the power semiconductor switch very quickly; and 4. switching on and off multiple times.

[0006] In addition, EP 3001525A1 discloses a short-circuit switch with a semiconductor switch, which can be controlled to short-circuit the voltage applied between two conductors. The semiconductor switch is a conventional compression package type thyristor, which has flat contact electrodes on the contact sides opposite to each other. When assembling the semiconductor component, its contact electrodes are contacted by flat connecting electrodes, which are elastically loaded relative to each other with high rigidity. In this way, even under the high thermal load caused by the high flowing power current, the planar contact of the semiconductor component is ensured. The thyristor is arranged in a mechanical compression package structure, which forms a protective sleeve surrounding the thyristor. The thyristor is designed so that the thyristor is irreversibly destroyed by the short-circuit current flowing through it during the short circuit as a controllable semiconductor switch, wherein the conductivity between its contact electrodes is maintained. The short-circuit current should be at least 50 times the rated current, and the thyristor is designed to be connected under this rated current.

[0007] A disadvantage when using a conventional thyristor as a short-circuit switch is that, since the surge current value of the conventional thyristor is widely spread upward, it is not possible to ensure at which current the thyristor is destroyed and a defined short circuit is formed.

[0008] As described above, for example, by a suitable modular structure such as a pressure contact, it can be reliably ensured that the "fault short circuit" state is achieved by targeted alloying. In this case, the semiconductor device is in a suitable housing, for example, in a ceramic chamber or a ceramic packaging box, the external current contacts of which are made of thick copper dies (or other conductive metals), which are usually cathode terminals and anode terminals. By appropriate pressure bonding, it is ensured that the two contact dies are in contact with the respective metal contact electrodes of the semiconductor device with a sufficiently high pressure so as to produce a particularly low electrical and thermal transition between the semiconductor device and the copper die of the housing. If the location of the alloying is located in the pressed contact area, then not only during the occurrence of a fault event, in which melting or alloying occurs, but also during the persistent current flow after the occurrence of the fault event, the damaged area of ​​the semiconductor device will remain in the pressed contact area. The housing is not damaged or almost not damaged on the outside, and the energy conversion during and after the fault event is carried out inside the semiconductor device and remains confined to the area of ​​the pressure contact there. It is essential that the electrical connections in the component are not disconnected due to a fault situation, as can occur, for example, in the case of welded components, in which the current flows through the welding wires. Here, at high currents, a galvanic isolation of the terminals in the component can occur due to the melting of the welding wires or welding connection points. Due to the very high energies in the event of a fault, this inevitably leads to the complete destruction of the entire semiconductor component, which also poses a high risk to the equipment in the vicinity of the component. The welding wires are relatively open inside the housing surrounding the semiconductor device component and are usually also embedded in gel, so that due to arcs between the interrupted welding wires, explosive destruction can occur. In contrast, in the case of pressure-contacted components, the energy conversion or melting area or arc in the silicon is limited to the area contacted by the contact plates on the anode side and the cathode side, so that even at the highest current densities, explosions or destruction of the immediate vicinity of the component can be avoided to the greatest extent possible.

[0009] If a conventional thyristor is loaded to its surge current limit value, then due to the intense, large-area heating in its cathode surface, the thyristor loses its blocking and interrupting capacity briefly, i.e. reversibly, partially or completely, until the blocking layer temperature drops again to a range permissible for continuous operation. The permissible surge current density at the current maximum value of a single 10 ms pulse is usually between 1.0 and 1.5 kA / cm 2In the case of surge current densities, irreversible damage has not yet occurred. If this limit value is significantly exceeded, the heating will lead to melting (alloying) in the cathode surface, the thyristor will be destroyed, and it will irreversibly lose its blocking capability or its control function. As long as the melting is located in the area contacted and pressed by the copper contact plate or the copper die of the package, and at the same time is far enough away from the edge area of ​​the thyristor, not only the package but also the immediate surroundings will remain intact to the greatest extent possible.

[0010] However, the main disadvantage of conventional thyristors as short-circuit protection devices, such as those described in DE 102008049678 A1 or DE 102009045216 A1, is their large cathode surface, which is designed for the lowest possible conduction losses or forward losses or for the maximum surge current capability. Their diameter corresponds approximately to the diameter of the contact disk of the copper die, or is generally slightly larger (up to about 0.5 to 2 mm). If the desired alloying occurs in the cathode surface due to high short-circuit currents, it cannot be ensured that the alloying occurs far enough away from the edge region of the thyristor. The edge region can be understood to mean a radially outer region of the component that is not covered or squeezed by, for example, the contact disk of the copper die, which is usually in pressure contact with the contact electrodes (in particular the cathode terminal and the anode terminal) of the semiconductor device. The alloyed region is located at a certain position within the cathode surface and can also extend into the edge region. In this case, damage to the ceramic housing may result and plasma may escape. Plasma escape may also occur in the center of the semiconductor device, i.e. if, for example, a gate electrode or an auxiliary thyristor structure (amplifying gate structure) is arranged in the center of the semiconductor device, which gate electrode or auxiliary thyristor structure is also not covered or squeezed by the contact pad of the copper stamper which is in pressure contact with the semiconductor device.

[0011] Compared with the rest of the area, the edge area of ​​the thyristor is also very easily affected by the overvoltage that occurs, which is directly contacted or covered by the copper contact plate. Such a fault, in conjunction with the short-circuit current flowing at this time, can cause damage to the package box due to very high energy turns, especially in the case of high blocking voltages, as described above. Although the strength against such overvoltages can be significantly improved by various measures, this brings serious disadvantages. For example, a very thicker silicon output wafer will significantly improve the blocking capacity, and thus the possibility of edge faults caused by overvoltage can be avoided to the greatest extent. However, since there are excessive dynamic losses and forward losses in the conventional thyristor structure at this time, this is meaningless, because the thyristor can no longer meet the requirements set for it at this time, especially the lowest forward losses and the maximum surge current performance and the lowest dynamic losses.

[0012] If the thyristor is, for example, R If a fault occurs under certain conditions, for example due to overvoltage or blocking instability due to passivation of its edge contour, the fault location is mostly located in the edge area of ​​the thyristor component and therefore outside the area directly contacted by the copper contact disk. Very high short-circuit currents flow in the blocking direction, wherein undisturbed areas do not participate in the current flow, while melting occurs at the fault location. An arc is generated in the interior of the housing package or at the fault location, the molten material evaporates and generates a hot plasma, which, depending on its intensity, can lead to the destruction of the package. Due to this explosive discharge, the ceramic package will rupture in the vicinity of the melt layer, and the hot plasma will then escape from the ceramic package. At the applied blocking voltage U D This marginal failure also occurs in the case of Summary of the invention

[0013] Against this background, the object underlying the present invention is to provide a short-circuit semiconductor component, by means of which a voltage applied to the semiconductor component can be reliably and permanently (stable over a long period of time) short-circuited as a function of a trigger signal or a switch-on signal, without plasma escaping explosively from the semiconductor element during this period. Furthermore, in normal, non-short-circuited operating conditions, the semiconductor component should be able to reliably and stably over a long period of time block the flow of current through the semiconductor component in both directions or with both polarities when a voltage is applied to it. Furthermore, the blocking losses in this operating condition should be so low that operation is possible without active cooling. Furthermore, a method for operating a short-circuit semiconductor component should be provided.

[0014] This object is achieved by a short-circuit semiconductor component having the features of claim 1 and by a method for operating a short-circuit semiconductor component having the features of claim 21. The dependent claims disclose further particularly advantageous embodiments of the invention.

[0015] It should be pointed out that the features listed individually in the following description can be combined with one another in any technically meaningful manner and represent further embodiments of the invention. The description additionally characterizes and explains the invention, particularly in conjunction with the drawings.

[0016] According to the invention, a short-circuit semiconductor device has a semiconductor body, wherein, in the vertical direction, starting from a back side having a back side center determined by its geometric center of gravity, in the direction toward a front side opposite to the back side having a front side center determined by its geometric center of gravity, a back side base region of a first conductivity type, for example, a p-type, an inner region of a second conductivity type complementary to the first conductivity type, for example, an n-type, and a front side base region of the first conductivity type are arranged in sequence. In addition, the back side base region is conductively connected to a back side electrode (metallization layer, for example, aluminum) applied to the back side, the back side electrode having a lateral back side electrode width given by its lateral extension. The front side base region is conductively connected to a front side electrode (metallization layer, for example, aluminum) applied to the front side, the front side electrode having a lateral front side electrode width given by its lateral extension. According to the invention, at least one front contact structure is embedded in the front base region and at least partially covered by the front electrode, the front contact structure having a lateral front contact structure width given by its lateral extension, and / or at least one back contact structure is embedded in the back base region and at least partially covered by the back electrode, the back contact structure having a lateral back contact structure width given by its lateral extension. The contact structures are designed and arranged in this case in such a way that they are switched on and once-for-all a permanent, irreversible, electrically conductive, low-resistance connection is established between the front electrode and the back electrode, depending on a predeterminable switch-on signal input to the semiconductor body. The invention further provides that, in the presence of the front contact structure, the ratio of the lateral front contact structure width to the lateral front electrode width is less than 1, and in the presence of the back contact structure, the ratio of the lateral back contact structure width to the lateral back electrode width is less than 1.

[0017] It should be noted that the conjunction "and / or" between two features and connecting these two features to one another is always to be interpreted here in such a way that in a first exemplary embodiment of the subject matter according to the invention only the first feature can be present, in a second exemplary embodiment only the second feature can be present, and in a third exemplary embodiment both the first feature and the second feature can be present.

[0018] A lateral extension direction in a semiconductor body is understood here to be a direction which is substantially perpendicular to the vertical extension direction of the semiconductor body. Thus, in the case of a semiconductor body designed, for example, as a cylinder (having a low height), the vertical extension direction corresponds to the direction of the cylinder's height, while the lateral direction corresponds to the radial direction of the cylinder. The terms "lateral" and "radial" may be used synonymously in this context.

[0019] It should also be noted that the front center and the back center of the short-circuited semiconductor component can be different, but this is not absolutely necessary and is not usually the case. The two centers usually define the symmetry axis of the semiconductor body, starting from which the radius of the semiconductor body is determined. If the center relative to the front part of the short-circuited semiconductor component is mentioned below, this center should always be understood as the front center unless otherwise explicitly stated in this text. Similarly, the relationship between the center of the semiconductor body and the back part should be understood as the back center accordingly, unless otherwise explicitly stated in this text.

[0020] The lateral width of an entire structure, for example a contact structure or an electrode, is thus obtained from the distance from the inner side which delimits the entire structure radially furthest inwards to the outer side which delimits the entire structure radially furthest outwards. This is immediately evident for structures of a semiconductor body which are arranged spaced apart relative to its radial center (r=0), i.e. relative to the geometrical center of gravity or the geometrical center of the front and / or rear side of the semiconductor body. In the special case, i.e., in which the entire structure has no spacing from the radial center, i.e., its radial inner side extends all the way to the radial center, the lateral width of the entire structure corresponds to the distance from the outer side which delimits the entire structure radially outwards to the radial center. In other words, in this case, the lateral width corresponds to the radius of the entire structure (measured from the radial center) or even to half its diameter.

[0021] Therefore, the semiconductor body of the short-circuit semiconductor device according to the present invention has a pnp structure or npn structure between its front electrode or front metallization layer and its back electrode or back metallization layer, which reliably and stably blocks the component in both directions or both polarities for the voltage applied between the front electrode and the back electrode. This state is referred to herein as the normal, non-short-circuited operating state of the short-circuit semiconductor device according to the present invention.

[0022] In contrast, if an overload occurs in the electrical device to be protected by the short-circuit semiconductor device according to the invention due to an excessively high current (which may be up to several 100 kA) in the event of a fault, the short-circuit semiconductor device according to the invention switches on the signal once by means of at least one switch-on structure, and thereafter a permanent and irreversible short circuit occurs between the external metal terminals, that is, between the front electrode and the back electrode. After this, the short-circuit semiconductor device according to the invention no longer has a blocking capability. This state is referred to herein as the short-circuited operating state or short-circuit state of the short-circuit semiconductor device according to the invention.

[0023] Switching on or activating the contact structure by inputting a predeterminable contact signal into the semiconductor body leads specifically to the one-time production of a permanent, irreversible, electrically conductive, low-resistance connection between the front electrode and the back electrode (permanent short circuit).

[0024] In this case, the permanent short circuit is produced by the targeted contacting at a locally limited area in the component, which is essentially determined by the ratio of the lateral front contact structure width to the lateral front electrode width (if a front contact structure is present in the semiconductor body) or the lateral back contact structure width to the lateral back electrode width (if a back contact structure is present in the semiconductor body), so that melting subsequently occurs there in the current-carrying area due to the high current density. In the case of such melting, which is also called alloying, the material of the external metallic connection (for example aluminum, molybdenum and / or copper) and the silicon of the semiconductor body melt. After the melting process, a metal area with high electrical conductivity is formed, which permanently short-circuits the external metallic connection and can, in principle, also maintain the short-circuit function under current load for a longer period of time, for example until the next maintenance.

[0025] According to the above description, according to another aspect of the present invention, a method for operating a short-circuit semiconductor device is also disclosed. The short-circuit semiconductor device has the features according to the present invention described herein.

[0026] When considering the relationship between the lateral contact structure width and the respective lateral electrode width, according to the invention, the lateral contact structure width of the front contact structure is always compared with the lateral electrode width of the front electrode, as long as a front contact structure is present in the semiconductor body, and the lateral contact structure width of the back contact structure is always compared with the lateral electrode width of the back electrode, as long as a back contact structure is present in the semiconductor body. Correspondingly, in this context, this also means that the front contact structure is assigned to the front electrode and the back contact structure is assigned to the back electrode.

[0027] Thus, in the event of a fault, a switching signal is generated once, by means of which at least one front and / or back contact structure is activated or switched in such a way that an electrically conductive, low-resistance connection is established between the two external electrical connection terminals of the short-circuit semiconductor device according to the invention, that is, between the front electrode and the back electrode and the pnp structure or npn structure arranged between the two electrodes. A current flow (short-circuit current) is generated between the front electrode and the back electrode. It has been shown that the current carrying capacity of the front or back contact structure is substantially determined by the respective ratio between its lateral contact structure width and the lateral electrode width of the correspondingly assigned front or back electrode. Compared to conventional thyristors, in which this ratio is substantially 1, in order to be able to achieve maximum surge currents and minimum conduction losses, the current carrying capacity of the front and / or back contact structure in the short-circuit semiconductor device according to the invention is limited based on the ratio of less than 1 defined in this context in such a way that switching on the short-circuit semiconductor device according to the invention reliably leads to its alloying. After alloying, the short-circuit semiconductor device is in a permanent, irreversible, low-resistance current-carrying state between the front electrode and the back electrode, so that the voltage applied between the two electrodes can be permanently and stably short-circuited for a long time. In other words, the voltage drop between the front electrode and the back electrode of the short-circuit semiconductor device according to the invention in the event of a short circuit is so small (low-resistance current-carrying state) that even in the case of a short-circuit operation lasting a longer time, the electrical losses in the short-circuit semiconductor device according to the invention are very low, and active cooling can therefore be omitted in an advantageous manner.

[0028] In the sense of the present invention, the above-mentioned condition "less than 1" must always be interpreted in such a way that manufacturing-dependent dimensional deviations between the respective lateral contact structure width and the lateral electrode width of the electrode respectively assigned to the contact structure in question, which dimensional deviations lie within the manufacturing tolerances defined for the corresponding manufacturing method of the short-circuit semiconductor component according to the present invention, are not covered by the condition "less than 1" used in this text. In other words, according to the above definition, the ratio of the lateral contact structure width to the lateral electrode width of the respective electrode can only be regarded as "less than 1" in the sense of the present invention if the two compared lateral widths differ from one another so greatly in their dimensions that the difference in dimensions can no longer be attributed to manufacturing-dependent tolerance deviations of the relevant features, but is the result of a targeted processing.

[0029] It has been shown that, given a given vertical thickness of the semiconductor inner region of the semiconductor body, the melting current is substantially proportional to the area of ​​the front and / or back contact structures and can therefore be determined. Furthermore, a (significantly) smaller contact structure width of the corresponding lateral contact structures compared to the lateral electrode width of the corresponding electrode allows the alloying in the short-circuited semiconductor component to be locally limited in such a way that the extent of the alloying in the lateral direction or radial direction can be substantially limited to the region of the front and / or back contact structures. Thus, in any case, the alloyed region can be kept sufficiently far away from the outer edge region of the short-circuited semiconductor component according to the invention. Accordingly, the alloying occurs only in the region of the interior of the short-circuited semiconductor component covered by the front and back electrodes, so that during the short-circuit operation, the short-circuited semiconductor component does not suffer any mechanical damage in its edge region, which could lead to the plasma escaping from the short-circuited semiconductor component and thus to damage of the housing that may surround the short-circuited semiconductor component.

[0030] At this point it should also be noted that the ratio of the lateral front contact structure width to the lateral front electrode width of less than 1 or the ratio of the lateral back contact structure width to the lateral back electrode width of less than 1 should apply to every arbitrarily considered position of the short-circuit semiconductor component according to the invention. If the short-circuit semiconductor component according to the invention is designed, for example, as a cylinder with a completely rotationally symmetrical design of the front contact structure and / or the back contact structure and the corresponding electrodes (front and / or back), then the consideration of the above defined ratio at exactly one arbitrary position on the short-circuit semiconductor component directly also applies to all other positions on the short-circuit semiconductor component. However, if, in the cylindrical short-circuit semiconductor component selected by way of example, the lateral contact structure width and / or the lateral electrode width changes depending on the considered position along the circumference of the short-circuit semiconductor component, i.e., the short-circuit semiconductor component is not designed rotationally symmetrically with respect to the considered contact structure and / or the electrode associated with the contact structure, then the ratio of the lateral contact structure width to the lateral electrode width can also change depending on the considered circumferential position. However, according to the above definition, within the meaning of the present invention, this ratio should be less than 1 at every arbitrarily considered position on the short-circuited semiconductor component.

[0031] It should also be understood that, within the meaning of the present invention, in the case where the connection structure does not have a substantially constant connection structure width in the vertical direction, in order to take into account the ratio between the connection structure width and the electrode width of the electrode correspondingly assigned to the connection structure, the maximum connection structure width occurring in the vertical direction is used as the connection structure width to be used for the comparison.

[0032] Particularly preferably, the ratio of the lateral contact structure width to the lateral electrode width of the front electrode or the back electrode respectively assigned to the front contact structure or the back contact structure is selected to be less than 4 / 5, for example also selected to be less than 3 / 4, 2 / 3, 1 / 2, 1 / 3, 1 / 4, 1 / 5. Therefore, in any case, the lateral contact structure width of the front contact structure or the back contact structure in the short-circuit semiconductor component according to the present invention is selected to be significantly smaller than the lateral electrode width of the respective electrode. As a result, the melting current can be set to a desired small value, at which alloying of the short-circuit semiconductor component according to the present invention reliably occurs. It is thus ensured that even relatively small fault currents or short-circuit currents conducted by the short-circuit semiconductor component according to the present invention between the front electrode and the back electrode can reliably alloy the component in the desired manner and thus produce an irreversible, low-resistance current-carrying state (short-circuited operating state).

[0033] An advantageous embodiment of the invention provides that the contact structure is completely covered by the front electrode and the back electrode, wherein this is understood to be a covering in the lateral direction. Complete front and back covering of at least one contact structure offers the advantage that the probability of plasma escaping from the semiconductor body due to alloying is further reduced, since the alloying in the short-circuiting semiconductor component according to the invention can be limited locally in the sense that the alloying takes place in the region covered by the two electrodes, as already described above. This also reliably prevents a housing that may surround the short-circuiting semiconductor component from being damaged by preventing plasma from escaping from the short-circuiting semiconductor component during alloying in this way. Preferably, the covering of the respective contact structure by the front electrode or the back electrode in the outer edge region (i.e. in the direction towards the radial outer edge of the short-circuiting semiconductor component according to the invention) can be in the range of at least a few millimeters, for example approximately 1 millimeter to 5 millimeters or more.

[0034] Furthermore, at least one contact structure can preferably be arranged close to the center in the semiconductor body. This is to be understood as meaning that the radial distance of the inner side of the contact structure which is bounded most radially inwards to the corresponding center of the semiconductor body, that is, the radial distance to the geometrical center of gravity or geometrical center (also referred to as radial center here) of the front and / or rear side of the semiconductor body is smaller than the distance of the outer side of the contact structure which is bounded most radially outwards to the radial outer edge of the semiconductor body. This measure also further reduces the probability of plasma escape in the edge region of the semiconductor body during the alloying of the short-circuited semiconductor component according to the invention, because the alloying is limited to a close to the center region of the semiconductor body between the front electrode and the rear electrode, which region is exactly covered by these electrodes. Damage to a housing which may surround the short-circuited semiconductor component due to the alloying is thus reliably prevented.

[0035] A further advantageous embodiment of the invention provides that the front electrode and the back electrode cover the center of the front side or the center of the back side of the semiconductor body and the contact structure is arranged at this center. As a result, the distance of the outer side of the contact structure which delimits the contact structure radially outwards to the radial outer edge of the semiconductor body can be maximized and thus the edge region of the semiconductor body and additionally the region between the radial outer side of the contact structure and the outer edge of the semiconductor body can be reliably protected by covering the front and back sides of the semiconductor body against undesired plasma escapes due to alloying of the short-circuited semiconductor components, depending on the selected lateral electrode width of the front and back electrodes, which according to the invention is always greater than the lateral contact structure width.

[0036] According to yet another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the contact structure is an emitter structure of a second conductivity type, for example an n-type, which is embedded in the front base region or in the back base region and is in conductive contact with an electrode (front electrode or back electrode) applied to the respective base region, and which can be switched on by means of at least one trigger structure acting on the emitter structure electrically via the semiconductor body. In this case, the trigger structure can in turn be activated by means of the switch-on signal. It should be understood that an emitter structure in conductive contact with the front electrode is a front contact structure in which an emitter structure of the second conductivity type is embedded adjacent to the front side of the semiconductor body in the front base region of the first conductivity type in such a way that it is conductively contacted by applying the front electrode to the front side of the semiconductor body. In a sense, this situation is similar to an emitter structure which is conductively contacted with a back electrode, which emitter structure is correspondingly a back contact structure in which an emitter structure of the second conductivity type is embedded adjacent to the back side of the semiconductor body in a back base region of the first conductivity type in such a way that it is conductively contacted by applying a back electrode to the back side of the semiconductor body. The contacting of the emitter structure with the respective front electrode or back electrode is preferably carried out by direct contact between the respective components in this case.

[0037] A contact structure designed as an emitter structure with a certain lateral contact structure width has the advantage that the current plasma can expand on the surface of the emitter structure before alloying begins, which has the result that the alloying has a larger lateral width and therefore a larger cross section overall. The larger line cross-section of the alloyed region in the semiconductor body obtained in this way advantageously leads to a reduction in the electrical resistance of the short-circuit region formed by the alloying in the semiconductor body. Accordingly, the short-circuit region can permanently carry higher short-circuit currents with lower line losses. Active cooling of the semiconductor component according to the invention can advantageously be omitted.

[0038] According to yet another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the trigger structure is a gate electrode and the switch-on signal is an electrical signal input to the gate electrode. In this case, it is particularly preferred that at least one region of the base region containing the emitter structure is designed such that the at least one region forms an electrical operative connection between the gate electrode and the emitter structure, so that the emitter structure can be switched on using such an electrical signal input to the gate electrode, i.e., the current strength of the electrical signal is at least approximately 1 A, preferably at least approximately 2 A, and more preferably between approximately 5 A and approximately 10 A.

[0039] The trigger current or switch-on current of a conventional thyristor depends on the specific surface resistance of its cathode-side base region, in which the cathode-side emitter is embedded, and must be set in accordance with process technology in such a way that the trigger current value or switch-on current value is usually in the mA range, in particular adopts values ​​between 30 mA (125° C.) and 400 mA (room temperature), and accordingly lies within a relatively narrow range. This ensures, for example, that a conventional thyristor reliably withstands high switch-on loads at the beginning of switch-on when switching on very high currents with very high current slopes, when it is controlled by a conventional trigger current generator or switch-on current generator with the aid of a precisely defined trigger current profile or switch-on current profile (trigger current amplitude / switch-on current amplitude and trigger current duration / switch-on current duration).

[0040] Since the short-circuit semiconductor device according to the present invention is intended to be alloyed after a one-time triggering, a significantly higher minimum on-current is preferably selected for the short-circuit semiconductor device, in particular in the ampere range, for example at least 1A or at least 2A or even at least 5A to about 10A, since, on the one hand, the cost for controlling the specific surface resistance of the base region containing the emitter structure during the manufacture of the short-circuit semiconductor device can be greatly reduced, and on the other hand, the requirements for a trigger current generator or a turn-on current generator for generating an electrical turn-on signal can be greatly reduced, thereby making it possible to achieve a more cost-effective control embodiment.

[0041] Furthermore, it should be understood that, despite the relatively high trigger current or switch-on current selected in the short-circuit semiconductor device according to the invention according to the present embodiment, the short-circuit semiconductor device according to the invention is still controlled only with a slight overload, i.e., for example, with an overload of 10 A / 5 A=2. In contrast, if, in the case of conventional thyristors, a trigger current or switch-on current is used not in the mA range, as described above, but in the ampere range, for example, in the range between 5 A and 10 A, this would result in an overload of one or two orders of magnitude higher for conventional thyristors, with an overload factor of, for example, 10 A / 100 mA=100. A large overload factor can cause conventional thyristors to be switched on quickly. In the short-circuit semiconductor device according to the invention, the slightly selected overload (but with a high trigger current or switch-on current in the ampere range) promotes the desired failure of the device, that is, the desired one-time, irreversible alloying.

[0042] Furthermore, the high switch-on current has other advantages. Thus, for example, a simple test for checking the operational readiness of a short-circuited semiconductor component can be provided by a permanent test current between a gate electrode and a connecting terminal of an electrode (front electrode or back electrode) which contacts an emitter structure to be switched on via the gate electrode, wherein the test current is then selected to be much smaller than the switch-on current. In addition, the high switch-on current also provides a higher EMC protection, for example against non-tripping due to very high voltages and rapid changes in current in the environment of the short-circuited semiconductor component, since the susceptibility to such non-tripping increases as the trigger current or switch-on current becomes smaller.

[0043] In addition to the on-current described above, in certain cases, in the short-circuit semiconductor device according to the present invention, the on-current can also be set to be significantly less than 1A, for example, the on-current intensity is less than 1A, down to about 500mA, or even less than up to about 100mA.

[0044] Another advantageous embodiment of the invention provides that the trigger structure is a light-sensitive region arranged in the base region containing the emitter structure, and the switch-on signal is an optical signal fed to this light-sensitive region. Suitable light sources are, for example, lasers or relatively inexpensive LEDs. An advantage of an optical switch-on signal over an electrical switch-on signal is better EMC protection, since an optical lead-in (e.g. via a glass fiber) for the switch-on signal to the light-sensitive trigger structure in the semiconductor body is completely insensitive to non-triggering caused by very high electric and magnetic fields, which are caused by very high current and voltage changes in the surroundings of the short-circuited semiconductor component, compared to an electrical lead-in. Furthermore, an optical switch-on signal has many advantages in the case of high potential differences applied to the short-circuited semiconductor component (compared to isolation of very high voltage differences in the range of 10 kV to 100 kV).

[0045] In addition, the one-time switching of the short-circuited semiconductor element by means of an optical switching signal in the event of a fault has other advantages compared to conventional magnetoelectrically triggered thyristors. Since the optical switching signal in the short-circuited semiconductor device according to the invention is only generated once in the event of a fault, there are no special requirements for the aging of the optical control unit, as is the case, for example, for lasers, if the lasers must periodically provide signals of sufficient intensity over a period of several decades. Therefore, a minimum trigger power is also not required. Instead of lasers, significantly more cost-effective LEDs can be used as optical control units in an advantageous manner. Compared to conventional magnetoelectrically triggered thyristors, other integrated protection functions, such as BOD protection (BOD: Breakover Diode) or du / dt protection, can be omitted, thereby achieving a simpler gate design. Compared to conventional optical control units, a significant simplification of the optical control unit, including the light guide system, is achieved.

[0046] According to another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the trigger structure is a breakdown structure and the switch-on signal is a voltage applied between the front electrode and the back electrode. The breakdown structure is characterized in that, depending on the voltage applied to the external electrode of the short-circuited semiconductor device, which voltage causes a corresponding voltage drop across the breakdown structure, the breakdown structure allows a steep current rise in the form of an avalanche current when a breakdown voltage that can be determined for the breakdown structure is reached or exceeded, which steep current rise is preferably not limited by a protective resistor, via which an emitter structure (switch-on structure) that is electrically operatively connected to the breakdown structure designed as a trigger structure can be switched on.

[0047] For example, the breakdown structure can be designed as a BOD structure (BOD: Break Over Diode). Other breakdown structures that act similarly in function and are known per se, for example from conventional magneto-electrically triggerable thyristors (LTTs), can also be used, for example a breakdown structure with a conventional du / dt protection and / or a breakdown structure with a conventional release time protection with a local increase in the carrier lifetime. In addition, the breakdown structure also represents a further measure for avoiding blocking failures in the radially outer edge region of the short-circuited semiconductor component in the event of an unforeseen overvoltage. In this case, the breakdown voltage of the breakdown structure is dimensioned so that the breakdown voltage has its lowest value of the entire semiconductor body exactly at the location of the breakdown structure and thus a breakdown in the edge region is reliably prevented. For this purpose, the breakdown structure is preferably arranged in the semiconductor body away from the edge, in particular close to the center. For example, the breakdown structure can be designed in the form of a structure that is closed in the circumferential direction, such as, for example, a ring structure and / or a polygonal structure, around the center, but (slightly) spaced apart from the center. However, in other cases, the breakdown structure can also be arranged directly in the center of the semiconductor body. In this context, the circumferential direction is understood to be a direction of extension parallel to the front or back side of the semiconductor body and substantially perpendicular to the radial direction or lateral direction of the semiconductor body.

[0048] Another advantageous embodiment of the invention provides that in the base region containing the emitter structure, between the trigger structure and the emitter structure electrically operatively connected to the trigger structure, an amplification gate structure having at least one amplification gate is arranged. In particular in the presence of a trigger structure designed as a breakdown structure, the at least one amplification gate stage (also referred to herein as an AG stage) offers the fundamental advantage that the temperature dependence of the magnitude of the breakdown voltage of the breakdown structure, in particular the BOD structure, in the semiconductor body is limited or reduced to the greatest extent possible and thus also the magnitude of the current density of the blocking current (which should lead to the connection of the connection structure and ultimately to alloying of the short-circuited semiconductor component) and the dependence of the magnitude of the breakdown voltage on the specific resistance of the semiconductor material surrounding the breakdown structure, that is, the dopant concentration of the semiconductor material, are limited or reduced, since one or more AG stages can at least partially compensate for the temperature-dependent behavior of the breakdown structure, for example the BOD structure. When the breakdown structure breaks down, the breakdown current (avalanche current) acts as a switch-on signal for at least one amplifier gate when the breakdown voltage is reached or exceeded, which in turn leads to the switching on of further amplifier gate stages that may be connected downstream and ultimately to the switching on of the actual switch-on structure.

[0049] In an embodiment of the invention which is particularly advantageous in terms of construction, the contact structure is arranged around and spaced apart from the center and the trigger structure, for example due to a trigger structure arranged in the center of the semiconductor body, and the contact structure has a closed circumference. The contact structure can be designed, for example, as a closed annular structure and / or a polygonal structure. In this context, the circumferential direction is understood to be a direction of extension parallel to the front side or back side of the semiconductor body and substantially perpendicular to the radial direction or lateral direction of the semiconductor body.

[0050] According to yet another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the contact structure is spaced apart from the trigger structure in the radial direction and has at least one contact structure segment which is open in the circumferential direction of the semiconductor body, the open contact structure segment having a contact structure width in the circumferential direction. In other words, unlike, for example, in the case of a closed annular structure and / or polygonal structure, the contact structure in this exemplary embodiment is not closed in the circumferential direction. That is, the contact structure width in the circumferential direction of at least one contact structure segment is in any case smaller than a contact structure width in the circumferential direction, i.e., the contact structure width in the circumferential direction corresponds to the closed annular structure and / or polygonal structure of the contact structure and therefore corresponds to a circumferential angle of 360 degrees of the closed annular and / or polygonal contact structure. Since the contact structures which are spaced apart from the center of the semiconductor body in the radial direction and which have a polygonal and / or annular structure which is closed in the circumferential direction have a certain minimum area due to the manufacturing process conditions, since, for example, the lateral contact structure width cannot be produced smaller than a certain lateral minimum structure width due to process technology, which minimum structure width can be, for example, at least about 50 μm, the effective area of ​​the contact structure for melting the semiconductor body can be further reduced according to advantageous embodiments of the short-circuit semiconductor component according to the invention, thereby also achieving particularly low melting currents which lead to reliable alloying of the semiconductor body. Thus, for example, a minimum, separate contact structure section can be provided in the semiconductor body, which has a lateral contact structure width of about 50 μm and a contact structure width in the circumferential direction, that is, a circumferential length, which enables the design of the short-circuit semiconductor component according to the invention with a melting current in the order of magnitude of several mA.

[0051] According to yet another advantageous embodiment of the invention, at least two contact structure sections separated from each other are arranged in the circumferential direction of the semiconductor body. The at least two contact structure sections separated from each other are preferably spaced equidistantly from each other to achieve a substantially circumferentially symmetrical embodiment of the short-circuit semiconductor component, which leads to a more uniform current distribution in the semiconductor body not only for the contact current for contacting the contact structure, but also for the melting current for producing the alloy in the semiconductor body and thus leads to a more uniform heat distribution over the entire semiconductor body, that is to say a more uniformly distributed mechanical load, in particular during alloying.

[0052] Yet another advantageous embodiment of the invention provides that, in addition to at least one through-channel electrically coupling the at least one contact structure segment with the trigger structure, the resistance in the base region containing the contact structure is increased at least in a portion of the radial intermediate space between the contact structure and the trigger structure (also referred to herein as the resistance range of the base region). As a result, a contact current flowing from the trigger structure to the contact structure can be directed in a targeted manner to the individual contact structure segment in order to reliably switch on the individual contact structure segment if necessary in order to initiate alloying of the short-circuit semiconductor component according to the invention. By means of the contact current directed in a targeted manner to the at least one contact structure segment by means of the through-channel, the total contact current provided by the trigger structure, which is required for switching on the or all contact structure segments, can be additionally reduced in an advantageous manner compared to a distribution of the contact current which otherwise extends uniformly in all radial directions.

[0053] An increased resistance in the resistance region of the base region compared to the resistance value in the through-channel is to be understood as a size difference in the resistance which is of course not to be attributed to size deviations of generally accepted manufacturing tolerances that are conditioned by manufacturing conditions, but is the result of a targeted process. Thus, for example, the resistance in the resistance region can be increased in a targeted manner by a significantly lower concentration of charge carriers of the same conductivity type as the rest of the base region, and / or by introducing so-called pinch resistors into the resistance region of the base region, which pinch resistors have a conductivity type complementary to the conductivity type of the base region, whereby the resistance in the resistance region of the base region is also increased in a targeted manner due to a reduction in the effective line cross section in the base region.

[0054] Another advantageous embodiment of the invention provides that the switch-on structure is a breakdown structure and that the switch-on signal is a voltage applied between the front electrode and the back electrode. As already explained above in conjunction with the breakdown structure designed as a trigger structure, the breakdown structure designed as a switch-on structure is also characterized in that, depending on the voltage applied to the external electrode of the short-circuited semiconductor component, which voltage causes a corresponding voltage drop across the breakdown structure, the breakdown structure allows a steep current rise in the form of an avalanche current when a breakdown voltage that can be determined for the breakdown structure is reached or exceeded, which steep current rise is preferably not limited by a protective resistor, via which the desired alloying of the short-circuited semiconductor component can be brought about.

[0055] The breakdown structure designed as a switch-on structure can also be designed as a BOD structure (BOD: Break Over Diode). Other breakdown structures that act similarly in function and are known per se, for example from conventional magnetoelectrically triggerable thyristors (LTTs), can also be used, for example a breakdown structure with a conventional du / dt protection and / or a breakdown structure with a conventional release time protection with a local increase in the carrier lifetime. In addition, the breakdown structure also represents another measure for avoiding blocking failures in the radially outer edge region of the short-circuited semiconductor component in the event of an unforeseen overvoltage. In this case, the breakdown voltage of the breakdown structure is dimensioned so that the breakdown voltage has its lowest value of the entire semiconductor body exactly at the location of the breakdown structure and thus a breakdown in the edge region is reliably prevented. For this purpose, the breakdown structure is preferably arranged in the semiconductor body away from the edge, in particular close to the center. For example, the breakdown structure can be designed in the form of a structure that is closed in the circumferential direction, surrounding the center, but (slightly) spaced apart from the center, such as, for example, a ring structure and / or a polygonal structure. However, in other cases, the breakdown structure can also be arranged directly on the center of the semiconductor body, such as in some cases in which at least the center is covered by respective electrodes both on the front side of the short-circuit semiconductor device according to the invention and on its back side, as has been described above in conjunction with the embodiments of the short-circuit semiconductor device according to the invention.

[0056] Since the breakdown structure designed as a trigger structure or a switch-on structure as described above receives its switch-on signal from the voltage applied to two electrodes outside the semiconductor body and therefore no further external, for example optical or electrical, switch-on signals have to be input to the short-circuited semiconductor component, a diode housing designed in this way can be used in a particularly advantageous manner to accommodate the short-circuited semiconductor component, provided that the switch-on structure or the trigger structure assigned to the switch-on structure is designed only as a breakdown structure, which has no additional connection terminals for additional external switch-on signals. Particularly preferably, in this case, the breakdown structure can be arranged in the center of the semiconductor body, wherein the front electrode and the back electrode can extend completely in the center and thus on the switch-on structure, since no recess for inputting an external switch-on signal has to be provided.

[0057] According to a further advantageous embodiment of the invention, the contact structure has at least one contact structure finger (also referred to as fingering of the contact structure) extending radially outwards from the rest of the contact structure in a lateral direction. In other words, the at least one contact structure finger protrudes radially outwards from the rest of the contact structure in a radial direction. As already explained above, alloying of the short-circuited semiconductor component should take place at a minimum melting current integral, which is essentially determined by the lateral contact structure width of the respective contact structure, for example by the lateral emitter structure width of the emitter structure or by the lateral breakdown structure width of the breakdown structure and thus by the area of ​​the contact structure that is effective during melting of the semiconductor body. In other words, the small ratio between the lateral contact structure width of the corresponding contact structure pursued according to the present invention and the lateral electrode width of the relevant electrode (which is applied to the base region having the contact structure) will lead to the desired small melting current, at which small melting current the alloying of the short-circuited semiconductor component will reliably occur, so that even relatively small fault currents or short-circuit currents conducted by the short-circuited semiconductor component between the front electrode and the back electrode can reliably alloy the short-circuited semiconductor component in the desired manner and thus produce an irreversible, low-resistance current-carrying state (short-circuited operating state).

[0058] On the other hand, the active area of ​​the contact structure, for example the active area of ​​the emitter structure or the breakdown structure, and therefore also the entire area of ​​the semiconductor body in general, should be adapted to the magnitude of the short-circuit current to be permanently absorbed by the short-circuited semiconductor component in the event of a short circuit, in order to prevent the melting process from starting explosively immediately at the beginning of the current flow if the area of ​​the contact structure is too small, which could lead to mechanical destruction of the entire short-circuited semiconductor component and thus possible environmental damage. A larger area of ​​the contact structure can have a favorable influence on the size of the lateral extension of the alloyed region, wherein a further lateral extension of the alloyed region advantageously leads to a reduction in the resistance of the short-circuit region formed by alloying in the semiconductor body due to the larger line cross section. The fingering of the contact structure advantageously achieves a compromise between the following mutually contradictory requirements, namely the requirement for the contact structure to have an area that is as small as possible and the requirement for reducing the short-circuit current or melting current required for reliable alloying and for having a sufficiently large area for reliably conducting the short-circuit current without having to consider mechanical destruction of the short-circuited semiconductor component, because in the case of a fingered contact structure, the area of ​​the short-circuited semiconductor component that is switched on by the switch-on signal and conducts the current can be distributed over a larger area.

[0059] Furthermore, the fingering of the contact structure helps to keep the melting region away from the center of the short-circuited semiconductor component. This is particularly advantageous when a trigger structure is located in the center of the semiconductor body, wherein the trigger structure is supplied with an external switch-on signal (e.g., an optical or electrical switch-on signal) for switching on the contact structure or the short-circuited semiconductor component. In this case, the region in which the switch-on signal is supplied to the trigger structure is not covered by an electrode (e.g., a cathode electrode or an anode electrode) for providing an electrical main connection for the short-circuited semiconductor component, which electrode is applied to the base region with the contact structure, so that during alloying, plasma can escape from the uncovered front and / or rear regions of the semiconductor body and thus can lead to damage to the housing surrounding the short-circuited semiconductor component and thus to damage to the surrounding environment.

[0060] Another advantageous embodiment of the invention provides that, in the presence of at least one fingered trigger structure as described above, the trigger structure has at least one trigger structure finger which corresponds to or follows the contour or shape of the at least one switching structure finger. In this way, a uniform spacing between the trigger structure and the switching structure over the entire extension of the fingered switching structure, for example a uniform spacing in the lateral direction or in the radial direction and / or in the vertical direction, can be ensured, so that the trigger structure can act on the switching structure uniformly over the entire extension of the switching structure in the sense of the invention.

[0061] According to another preferred embodiment of the invention, the at least one contact structure finger has a maximum lateral, i.e. radial, finger length which is less than 4 / 5 of the lateral electrode width of the electrode applied to the base region containing the contact structure. Thus, the maximum radial finger length can also be, for example, less than 3 / 4, 2 / 3, 1 / 2, 1 / 3, 1 / 4, 1 / 5 of the lateral electrode width. As described above, in the presence of a trigger structure which is also fingered and corresponds to or follows the fingering structure of the contact structure, the at least one trigger structure finger also has a finger length which corresponds to the finger length of the corresponding contact structure finger.

[0062] According to yet another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the thickness of the inner region in the vertical direction is greater than 400 μm, more preferably greater than 600 μm, and even more preferably greater than 800 μm or 900 μm or even 1000 μm. It can generally be determined that in the event of an overvoltage, the risk of edge failure of the short-circuited semiconductor device can be prevented by the significantly thicker inner region of the semiconductor body compared to conventional thyristors. As is the case with conventional thyristors, there is practically no maximum thickness for this inner region, since for the short-circuited semiconductor device according to the invention there are no conduction losses or dynamic losses which limit the thickness of the inner region upwards. Thus, for the required voltage level, which is, for example, V DRM / V RRM = 2.2 kV, a conventional thyristor is used, which has a thickness W n1 In contrast, for the short-circuit semiconductor device of the present invention, a thickness W of about 850 μm can be selected, for example. n In the case of a specific resistance of 270 Ω·cm, a symmetrical blocking capability (V DRM / V RRM=5.2 kV). With a corresponding design of the thickness of the inner region, even blocking capabilities >10 kV (medium voltage network) are achievable. Together with a corresponding adjustment of the service life by a high radiation dose for electron radiation, the blocking current can be adjusted to be very low. Therefore, the blocking capability of the short-circuit semiconductor device can be set to be much higher than the maximum overvoltage that occurs when the short-circuit semiconductor device is used, and this has no adverse effect on both the short-circuit semiconductor device and its application. Therefore, for the short-circuit semiconductor device according to the present invention, the smallest possible blocking current has great advantages, because the short-circuit semiconductor device is actually permanently connected to the blocking voltage during use, and thus the smallest possible blocking current is achieved, and therefore the accompanying blocking losses can be kept as small as possible, so that the short-circuit semiconductor device can be operated without active cooling. This measure also substantially eliminates the occurrence of faults in the edge area of ​​the short-circuit semiconductor device that are critical for the shell rupture current.

[0063] According to another advantageous embodiment of the present invention, the front electrode and the back electrode are respectively contacted by pressure in an electrically conductive manner by means of a metal contact disk. In this case, the respective contact disks may preferably have the same lateral width as the corresponding electrodes, so that the contact disks completely cover the corresponding electrodes. The contact disks may be firmly connected to the corresponding metal electrodes of the semiconductor body, for example, by means of an alloy (melt), or may be simply placed loosely on the semiconductor body. The contact disks may be designed as pure molybdenum disks or may be composed of a combination of molybdenum disks and copper disks, wherein, preferably, molybdenum is in direct contact with the metallization layer of the semiconductor body. As described above, the present invention advantageously ensures that, in the event of a short circuit, the alloyed region generated between the front electrode and the back electrode of the short-circuited semiconductor device is always located in the region of the short-circuited semiconductor device that is contacted by pressure by the metal contact disks.

[0064] The thickness of the molybdenum plate or the thickness of the combination of molybdenum and copper is preferably between 1 mm and 5 mm. It should be understood that the thickness of the contact plate can be adapted to the size of the short-circuit current flowing through the short-circuit semiconductor device. When alloying is carried out in the event of a short circuit, the silicon of the semiconductor body and the metal area of ​​the contact plate are melted together in this way, that is, a metal area is formed. According to the application or the size of the short-circuit current to be permanently conducted to the maximum, the thickness of the contact plate is designed in this way so that the side of the contact plate facing away from the respective electrodes of the semiconductor body will not show any excessively strong mechanical changes after the melting occurs. In particular, the pressure contact between the contact plate of the metallization layer of the contact semiconductor body and the corresponding contact die of the housing accommodating the short-circuit semiconductor device, such as a copper die, should be maintained under the short-circuit operation of the short-circuit semiconductor device, the pressure contact ensures a conductive, low-resistance and thermal coupling, the contact die is pressed against the contact plate with sufficient surface pressure, thereby reliably preventing the formation of an arc outside the area contacted by the contact plate pressure after the short-circuit semiconductor device is triggered. In any case, the molten zone must not penetrate outwards through the (copper) contact die of the housing during alloying.

[0065] It should be understood that the different types of connection structures described above can be combined with each other arbitrarily in a single short-circuit semiconductor device according to the present invention, in particular when more than one connection structure is provided in the short-circuit semiconductor device. If more than one trigger structure is provided in the short-circuit semiconductor device, the different types of trigger structures described above can also be combined with each other arbitrarily in a meaningful manner in a single short-circuit semiconductor device according to the present invention. Similarly, the different types of trigger structures described above can be combined with different types of connection structures arbitrarily.

[0066] Therefore, the short-circuit semiconductor component according to the invention can be switched on, for example, not only by one or more electrical switch-on signals, but also by one or more optical switch-on signals, wherein corresponding switch-on structures are provided in the semiconductor body. The switch-on signal can be input to the short-circuit semiconductor component only on one side, for example, on the front side of the semiconductor body, or can also be input to the short-circuit semiconductor component on both sides, i.e., on the front side and the back side of the semiconductor body, wherein corresponding trigger structures are provided on the corresponding side surfaces of the semiconductor body.

[0067] Furthermore, the short-circuit semiconductor component according to the invention can have one or more breakdown structures as triggering structures or switch-on structures, wherein a plurality of existing breakdown structures can be designed for the same breakdown voltage or for respectively different breakdown voltages.

[0068] The breakdown structures used as trigger structures, such as BOD structures, but also breakdown structures with conventional du / dt protection and breakdown structures with release time protection with a local increase in the carrier lifetime, can be arranged in the amplifier gate structure, that is, arranged laterally spaced apart from the front electrode or the back electrode and correspondingly arranged outside the region electrically contacted by these electrodes. However, the arrangement in the amplifier gate structure is not absolutely necessary. The breakdown structures used not only as trigger structures but also as switch-on structures can also be arranged vertically below the front electrode or the back electrode, for example in the base region electrically contacted by the respective electrode.

[0069] In addition, the trigger structure and the connection structure described in this article can be arranged only on one side, that is, only in the front base region or the back base region of the semiconductor body of the short-circuit semiconductor device according to the present invention, or can also be arranged on both sides, that is, in both base regions.

[0070] In summary, the definitions of terms used in this article are briefly outlined below:

[0071] I. Connection structure:

[0072] A structure for producing an alloy in the semiconductor body of a short-circuit semiconductor device according to the present invention so that after it is switched on, a low-resistance conductive state (short circuit) is established between main connection terminals (cathode / anode) which are electrically connected to the short-circuit semiconductor device, are external, and are electrically isolated from each other from the semiconductor body under normal operation (non-short-circuit condition).

[0073] Possible implementations are:

[0074] a. Emitter structure

[0075] b. Breakdown structure (e.g. in the form of BOD structure, du / dt structure, release time protection structure)

[0076] II.Connection signal:

[0077] A signal for initiating the switching on of the switching structure.

[0078] Possible implementations are:

[0079] a. A separate electrical signal input from the outside to the short-circuit semiconductor body according to the present invention

[0080] b. A separate optical signal input from the outside to the short-circuited semiconductor body according to the invention

[0081] c. Voltage / operating voltage applied to the main electrical connection terminals (cathode / anode) of the short-circuit semiconductor device according to the invention

[0082] III. Switching current:

[0083] Current derived from a turn-on signal and fed to a turn-on structure designed as an emitter structure in order to trigger or turn on the turn-on structure.

[0084] IV. Melting current:

[0085] An electric current that causes alloying in the semiconductor body.

[0086] V. Trigger structure:

[0087] An optional auxiliary structure is used to transmit the switch-on signal which is always input to the auxiliary structure to the switch-on structure.

[0088] Possible implementations are:

[0089] a. Gate electrode-input turn-on signal: II.a

[0090] b. Light-sensitive semiconductor region (photogate - input turn-on signal: II.b

[0091] c. Breakdown structure (e.g. in the form of BOD structure, du / dt structure, release time protection structure) - input connection signal: II.c

[0092] VI. Amplification gate structure (AG structure):

[0093] An optional auxiliary structure arranged between the trigger structure and the make-up structure, which serves to amplify a make-up signal coupled into the short-circuit semiconductor component according to the invention via the trigger structure. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0094] Other features and advantages of the present invention are derived from the following description of exemplary embodiments of the present invention, which are not to be understood as limiting, and which will be described in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings, schematically shown:

[0095] Figure 1 shows a vertical cross-sectional view of a thyristor according to the prior art;

[0096] Figure 2 shows a vertical cross-sectional view through an exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor device having a turn-on structure and a trigger structure according to the present invention;

[0097] Figure 3shows a top view through another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuited semiconductor device having a finger-shaped contact structure according to the present invention;

[0098] Figure 4 shows a vertical cross-sectional view through another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor device having two turn-on structures and one trigger structure according to the present invention;

[0099] Figure 5 shows a vertical cross-sectional view through yet another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor device according to the present invention having two turn-on structures and two trigger structures;

[0100] Figure 6 shows a vertical cross-sectional view through yet another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor device having a turn-on structure and a trigger structure according to the present invention;

[0101] Figure 7 shows a vertical cross-sectional view through another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor device according to the present invention having two turn-on structures and two trigger structures;

[0102] Figure 8 shows a vertical cross-sectional view through yet another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor device having two switch-on structures according to the present invention;

[0103] Fig. 9 shows a vertical cross-sectional view through yet another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor device according to the present invention having two turn-on structures and two trigger structures;

[0104] Fig.10 shows a vertical cross-sectional view through another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor device having two turn-on structures and one trigger structure according to the present invention;

[0105] Fig.11 In views (a), (b) and (c), the Fig.10 The concentration distribution of the short-circuited semiconductor device in along the concentration distribution line Na, Nb or Nc shown therein;

[0106] Fig.12 shows a vertical cross-sectional view through another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor device according to the present invention having two turn-on structures and two trigger structures;

[0107] Fig.13 A partial top view of yet another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor component according to the present invention is shown, the short-circuit semiconductor component having a connection structure and a trigger structure, the connection structure having a connection structure section open in the circumferential direction of the semiconductor body;

[0108] Fig.14 A partial top view of yet another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor component according to the present invention is shown, the short-circuit semiconductor component having a connection structure and a trigger structure, the connection structure having a connection structure section open in the circumferential direction of the semiconductor body;

[0109] Fig.15 Shown along the section line XX through the Fig.14 A vertical cross-sectional view of a short-circuited semiconductor device in FIG.

[0110] Fig.16 A partial top view of yet another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor component according to the present invention is shown, the short-circuit semiconductor component having a connection structure and a trigger structure, the connection structure having a connection structure section open in the circumferential direction of the semiconductor body;

[0111] Fig.17 A partial top view of yet another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor component according to the present invention is shown, the short-circuit semiconductor component having a connection structure and a trigger structure, the connection structure having a connection structure section open in the circumferential direction of the semiconductor body;

[0112] Fig.18 shows the cross-sectional line YY through the Fig.17 A vertical cross-sectional view of a short-circuited semiconductor device in FIG.

[0113] In the various figures, components which are equivalent in their function are always provided with the same reference numerals, which are therefore generally also described only once. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0114] Figure 1 1 shows a vertical cross section through a thyristor 1 according to the prior art. The thyristor 1 has a semiconductor body 2 which has essentially the shape of a very flat cylinder, the bottom side of which extends perpendicularly to the vertical direction v. Each direction perpendicular to the vertical direction v is referred to herein as a radial direction or a lateral direction, wherein the thyristor 1 has a semiconductor body 2 which has essentially the shape of a very flat cylinder, the bottom side of which extends perpendicularly to the vertical direction v. Figure 1 The transverse direction is denoted by the reference symbol r.

[0115] The semiconductor body 2 is formed from a semiconductor material, for example silicon, and has p-type and n-type conductively doped semiconductor regions which determine the electrical properties of the thyristor in a manner known per se. The thyristor 1 and / or the semiconductor body 2 are rotationally symmetrically formed with respect to a central axis 3 extending in a vertical direction v.

[0116] In the semiconductor body 2 of the thyristor 1 according to the prior art shown, a p-type doped back base region 6, an n-type doped inner region 7 and a p-type doped front base region 8 are arranged in sequence along the vertical direction v, starting from the back side 4 in the direction toward the front side 5 opposite to the back side 4.

[0117] Adjacent to the front side 5 of the semiconductor body 2 , an n-doped front side emitter 9 is embedded in the p-doped front side base region 8 , wherein the front side emitter 9 has a total lateral emitter width W given by its lateral extension. S1 The lateral total structure width of the emitter 9 is understood herein to mean the distance from the inner side of the emitter structure 9 shown as being most radially inwardly delimited to the outer side of the emitter structure 9 shown as being most radially outwardly delimited. Figure 1 In the conventional thyristor 1 shown in , the emitter 9 has a circumferentially closed annular structure which concentrically surrounds the central axis 3 , wherein the semiconductor body 2 or the thyristor 1 is substantially designed as a cylinder which is rotationally symmetrical with respect to the central axis 3 .

[0118] In addition, from Figure 1 As can be seen in FIG. 1 , the n-doped front emitter 9 is electrically conductively connected to a metallization layer 10 (e.g. aluminum) applied to the front side 5, which forms the front electrode 10 of the thyristor 1, wherein in the example of a conventional thyristor 1 shown, the front electrode 10 can also be referred to as a cathode electrode, which has a cathode terminal K. The front electrode 10 has a total lateral front electrode width W given by its lateral extension. E1 The p-doped back base region 6 is conductively connected to a metallization layer 11 (for example aluminum) applied to the back side 4 , which forms a back electrode 11 of the thyristor 1 , wherein in the example of a conventional thyristor 1 shown, the back electrode 11 can also be referred to as an anode electrode, which has an anode terminal A.

[0119] In addition, as Figure 1 As can be seen in the figure, the n-doped front emitter 9 is penetrated in a generally known manner by a short circuit 12 (also called cathode short circuit) which is designed in a cylindrical shape and doped in a manner complementary to the front emitter 9, which short circuit electrically connects the p-doped front base region 8 directly to the front electrode 10.

[0120] In addition, from Figure 1As can be seen in FIG. 1 , the thyristor 1 has a trigger structure in the form of a gate electrode 14 at a center 13 (r=0) of the semiconductor body 2, which is determined by the geometric center of the front side 5, by means of which, depending on an electrical trigger signal or a switch-on signal (gate current), an electrically conductive, low-resistance connection between the front electrode 10 (cathode in this case) and the back electrode 11 (anode in this case) can be produced in a generally known manner. Furthermore, a center 13 is also determined by the geometric center of the back side 4 of the semiconductor body 2, which coincides with the lateral position of the center 13 of the front side due to the symmetrical structure of the semiconductor body 2, so that the two centers are provided with the same reference numeral 13. The two centers 13 determine the course of the central axis 3 (also the axis of symmetry).

[0121] For example, if there is a positive potential between the back electrode 11 and the front electrode 10, then the thyristor 1 is in the blocking direction (U D ) is triggered or turned on by gate current (positive current direction from gate 14 to front electrode 10). When the current plasma is turned on, it starts from the side of the n-type highly doped front emitter 9 facing the center 13 and expands radially or laterally outward to the entire front electrode area W at a speed of about 0.1 mm / μs. E1 until, depending on the diameter of the thyristor 1, the entire front electrode area W E1 After about 1 to 4 ms, the current is guided and the high load current flows between the front electrode (cathode) 10 and the back electrode (anode) 11. The applied forward voltage then takes its minimum value in the on-state of the thyristor 1. Only when the current flowing through the thyristor 1 reaches zero value again does it "extinguish" and change to the blocking state (U R Or in other words, the negative potential between the back electrode 11 and the front electrode 10), between these two states can be switched arbitrarily frequently, such as in Figure 1 The normally functioning, conventional thyristor structure shown in FIG.

[0122] The cut-off voltage or blocking voltage of the thyristor 1 is determined by the minimum thickness W of the n-doped inner region 7. n1 The minimum area of ​​the n-doped front emitter 9 determines the size of the permissible surge current and the forward losses (conduction losses). The thickness Wn1 cannot be selected to be arbitrarily large in this case, for example to increase the blocking capability, because this has a negative impact on the surge current and the conduction losses. Accordingly, the area of ​​the emitter 9 and the silicon thickness Wn1 are determined. n1 Conventional thyristors 1 are designed precisely for the respective application.

[0123] As from Figure 1As can be further seen in FIG. 1 , the lateral width W of the front emitter 9 S1 is substantially equal to the lateral width W of the front electrode 10 E1 Therefore, in the conventional thyristor 1, the lateral front emitter width W S1 The width of the horizontal front electrode W E1 The ratio is substantially equal to 1 or even slightly greater than 1.

[0124] Figure 2 FIG. 1 shows a vertical cross-section through an exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor device 15 according to the present invention. The short-circuit semiconductor device 15 has a semiconductor body 16, wherein Figure 1 In a manner similar to the conventional thyristor 1 shown in the figure, in the vertical direction v, starting from the back side 4, in the direction toward the front side 5 opposite to the back side 4, a p-type doped back side base region 6, an n-type doped inner region 7 and a p-type doped front side base region 8 are arranged in sequence.

[0125] As from Figure 2 As can be seen in FIG. 1 , the rear base region 6 is electrically conductively connected to a rear electrode 11 applied to the rear side 4 , which has a total lateral rear electrode width W given by its lateral extension. ER , and the front base region 8 is electrically conductively connected to a front electrode 10 applied to the front side 5, which has a total lateral front electrode width W given by its lateral extension. EV .

[0126] Adjacent to the front side 5 of the semiconductor body 16 , a front side contact structure 17 is embedded in the p-doped front side base region 8 , which has a lateral front side contact structure width W given by its lateral extension. SV .exist Figure 2 In the exemplary embodiment shown in , the front contact structure 17 is designed as an n-type doped front emitter structure 17, which can be designed as a ring structure and / or a polygonal structure closed in the circumferential direction, for example. Figure 2 As can be seen in FIG. 1 , the emitter structure 17 is electrically conductively connected to a metallization layer 10 (eg aluminum) applied to the front side 5. As can be further seen, the front electrode 10 at least partially covers the front emitter structure 17. In particular, in FIG. Figure 2 , at least in terms of magnitude, that in the outer edge region, that is to say in the direction of the radial outer edge of the short-circuited semiconductor component 15 (r>0), the coverage of the contact structure 17 by the front electrode 10 is at least in the millimeter range, for example at least about 1 mm to 5 mm or even more. Figure 2As shown in FIG. 1 , on the radial inner side of the metallization layer 10 facing the center 13 , the emitter structure 17 protrudes slightly beyond the metallization layer. Figure 2 In the exemplary embodiment shown in , the n-doped front emitter structure 17 is likewise penetrated by a short circuit 12 , which is designed in a columnar manner and is doped in a complementary manner to the emitter structure 17 and electrically connects the p-doped front base region 8 to the front electrode 10 .

[0127] The shape of the short circuit 12 can vary depending on the desired strength of the short circuit effect. Typically, the short circuit 12 is formed over the entire emitter structure 17 by the lateral front emitter structure width W. SV A circular or polygonal, for example hexagonal, dot-shaped recess within a defined, continuous emitter structure area, wherein the short circuit 12 can have a size in the order of magnitude of approximately 100 μm. However, other shapes of such a short circuit 12 are also possible, such as a strip-shaped interruption or annular interruption, which divides the emitter structure 17 into individual, concentric rings. The width of such an interruption is usually in the range of approximately 100 μm.

[0128] with Figure 1 Compared with the conventional thyristor 1 shown in FIG. 1 , in the short-circuit semiconductor device 15 according to the present invention, by, for example, designing the short-circuit opening of the short-circuit 12 to be larger than that in FIG. Figure 1 The conventional thyristor 1 shown in FIG. 1 is significantly larger, and / or the density of the short circuits 12 is selected to be significantly higher relative to the emitter structure area of ​​the emitter structure 17, that is, the spacing between adjacent short circuits 12 is selected to be significantly smaller than in conventional thyristors 1, and the short-circuit effect of the short circuits 12 can also be greatly increased by targeted structural design. As a result, the short-circuit semiconductor device 15 according to the present invention can be further reduced in terms of kA / cm 2 The thyristor 1 is designed to minimize the area-specific surge current (in contrast to conventional thyristors 1 in which the surge current is always maximized as known per se) in order to reliably ensure alloying of the semiconductor body 16 described here in the event of a short circuit.

[0129] The two pn or np junctions arranged in the above-described manner in the semiconductor body 16 produce a short-circuit semiconductor component 15 that blocks at both voltage polarities.

[0130] exist Figure 2 The short-circuit semiconductor device 15 shown in FIG. Figure 1 The essential difference between the conventional thyristor 1 shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 is the lateral switch structure width or emitter structure width W. SV and the lateral electrode width W EVwhich is significantly less than 1 in the short-circuit semiconductor device 15 and can be selected to be preferably less than 1 / 2 or even smaller.

[0131] In addition, from Figure 2 It can be seen that the front electrode 10 and the back electrode 11 are electrically conductively contacted, in particular pressure-contacted, by means of a metallic front contact pad 18 and a surface contact pad 19, respectively. The contact pads 18 and 19 can be designed as pure molybdenum pads or as a combination of molybdenum pads and copper pads, wherein preferably the molybdenum is in direct contact with the respective electrode 10 or 11 of the semiconductor body 16. The thickness of the contact pads 18 and 19 is preferably between 1 mm and 5 mm.

[0132] In addition, Figure 2 1 , a front trigger structure 20 of the short-circuit semiconductor device 15 can be seen, which is designed as a gate electrode 20 and is in conductive contact with the front base region 8 and can be activated as a function of an electrical switch-on signal input to the gate electrode 20 via its gate terminal G and can thus switch on a front contact structure or emitter structure 17, which is electrically and effectively connected to the gate electrode 20 via the front base region 8. After switching on the contact structure or emitter structure 17, it once and for all establishes a permanent, irreversible, electrically conductive, low-resistance connection between the front electrode 10 and the back electrode 11. During operation, the gate electrode 20 is contacted via an electrically conductive metal wire (not shown) which is compressed by means of a spring action.

[0133] As already mentioned above and in Figure 2 As can be seen in FIG. 1 , the emitter structure 17 protrudes slightly beyond the metallization layer 10 on the radial inner side thereof facing the center 13. This is necessary here in order not to short-circuit the emitter structure 17. In the event of such a short circuit, the current of the switch-on signal input via the trigger structure or gate electrode 20 can flow directly from the trigger structure or gate electrode 20 to the electrode 10, which can however at least partially adversely affect the desired function of the switch-on structure or emitter structure 17.

[0134] Furthermore, the short-circuit semiconductor device 15 is generally accommodated in a hermetically sealed ceramic package (not shown) configured as a housing during operation. In order to input an external electrical switch-on signal or gate signal, a metal tube is installed in the ceramic package, which is connected to the gate region 20 of the metallization layer via a metal wire for coupling the external switch-on signal. The ceramic housing also has two copper contact dies, which are directly placed on the contact pads 18 or 19 of the front electrode 10 or the back electrode 11 on both sides of the short-circuit semiconductor device 15. The electrical connection of the short-circuit semiconductor device 15 in the ceramic package to the outside is carried out by a corresponding mechanical pressure bond, which presses the two copper contact dies together with sufficient surface pressure, and at the same time, in order to control by means of the switch-on signal, the metal tube in the ceramic package is connected to the wire outside the package by a suitable plug connection or fixed welding.

[0135] The essential function of the short-circuit semiconductor device 15 according to the invention is that, in the case of a single pulse of a switch-on signal or gate signal with a sufficient current magnitude, the n-doped front emitter structure 17 located in the vicinity of the gate electrode 20 is switched on and the semiconductor body 16 is switched on by a current flowing through the electrode terminal EV and ER The fault current is destroyed in such a way that a melt layer or alloy 21 is formed in the environment of the initially triggered region of the semiconductor body 16, the size or radial / lateral extension of which also depends on the terminal EV and ER After the melt cools, a metal region is formed, which consists of the melted silicon of the semiconductor body 16 and the metal of the contact pad 18 or 19, and is located between the two main terminals. EV and ER The magnitude of the melting current is determined by the maximum area of ​​the n-doped front emitter structure 17 designed according to the short-circuit current to be permanently absorbed, wherein the ratio W is as small as possible. SV / W EV For small melting currents and a lateral width W of the metal contact pad 18 or the front electrode 10 EV Depending on the magnitude of the short-circuit current, the thickness W of the n-doped inner region 7, which determines the blocking capability of the short-circuit semiconductor component 15, can be determined in such a way that the spatial extension of the broken-down region 21 does not reach the outer edge region of the short-circuit semiconductor component 15. In order to further avoid edge failures caused by possible overvoltages, the thickness W of the n-doped inner region 7, which determines the blocking capability of the short-circuit semiconductor component 15, can be determined in such a way that the spatial extension of the broken-down region 21 does not reach the outer edge region of the short-circuit semiconductor component 15. nIt can be chosen to be almost arbitrarily large, wherein the specific resistance of the inner region 7 is additionally adapted accordingly to the desired level of the blocking capability.

[0136] In the event of a malfunction, Figure 2 In the short-circuit device 15 shown in FIG. 1 , an electrical switch-on signal is generated once, and the electrical switch-on signal is provided to the gate electrode 20 at the center 13 of the semiconductor body 16 via an electrical input line to the gate terminal G. As a result, the npnp structure of the semiconductor body 16 is triggered or turned on, and then a current flows between the front electrode 10 and the back electrode 11, which leads to a melted layer 21 in the current-conducting region of the semiconductor body 16. After this, the short-circuit semiconductor device 15 is in a permanent, irreversible, low-resistance current-conducting state.

[0137] Relative to Figure 1 The current carrying capacity of the n-doped cathode-side emitter 9 of the conventional thyristor 1 shown in FIG. 1 is very strongly limited by the n-doped front emitter structure 17 , since the current carrying capacity is limited by the lateral emitter structure width W of the n-doped front emitter structure 17 . SV The total width W of the surface contacted by the metallization layer or the front electrode 10 and the contact pad 18 EV is determined by the ratio.

[0138] The location of the n-doped front emitter structure 17 close to the center 13 of the semiconductor body 16 keeps the broken-down region 21 in the vicinity of the initial ignition and prevents the plasma from leaving the region of the semiconductor body 16 contacted by the front electrode 10 and the contact disk 18 and from entering the radially outer edge region. Figure 2 The structure of the exemplary embodiment of the short-circuit semiconductor component 15 shown in FIG. 1 ensures that the alloying 21 always remains within the region covered by the electrode 10 and the contact pad 18 , that is to say within the electrode width W EV Inside.

[0139] Figure 3 FIG. 2 shows a top view of another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor component 22 having a finger-shaped contact structure 23 according to the present invention. Figure 3 In the figure, a front electrode 24 can be seen, which is applied to the front side of a semiconductor body 25 having a structure according to the invention. In the center 13 of the short-circuited semiconductor component 22, a gate electrode 26 designed as a trigger structure is applied to the semiconductor body 25, as shown in Figure 3 As can be seen in FIG. 1 , the gate electrode is radially spaced from the front electrode 24. Figure 3As can be further seen in the figure, the gate electrode 26 in the illustrated short-circuit semiconductor component 22 has four trigger structure fingers or gate fingers 27, which extend radially outward from the rest of the gate electrode 26, that is, from the central region. The front electrode 24 has recesses corresponding to the gate fingers 27, so that the gate fingers 27 can extend radially outward at a certain distance from the electrode 24. Corresponding to the recesses of the electrode 24, the contact structure 23, which is an emitter structure here and is embedded in the semiconductor body 25 and is electrically contacted by the electrode 24, is located below the electrode 24 and is at least partially covered by the electrode 24, and also has a course that follows the contour of the electrode recess.

[0140] The emitter structure 23 and its orientation are Figure 3 The width of the electrode gap is indicated by the thick outline drawn in FIG. Therefore, the width of the lateral emitter structure W SV Obviously, it basically corresponds to Figure 3 The width of the contour line drawn in FIG. In cross section, the emitter structure 23 can be similar to that from Figure 2 The emitter structure 17 in FIG. 1 is designed as an emitter structure 17 in FIG. 1 and also has a short circuit 12 . However, this is not absolutely necessary.

[0141] exist Figure 3 As can be seen in FIG. 1 , the emitter structure 23 has four contact structure fingers 28 in the lateral direction r, which extend radially outward from the remaining portion of the emitter structure 23 near the center, that is, from the region near the center of the emitter structure 23 . Figure 3 In the exemplary embodiment of the short-circuit semiconductor component 22 shown in FIG. , the contact structure or emitter structure 23 is designed linearly, following the contour of the electrode recess. Such a linear contact structure 23 can preferably have a lateral structure width W of approximately 500 μm. SV (See Figure 2 ). Therefore, in Figure 3 The contact structure or emitter structure 23 shown in FIG. 2 is designed partly as a ring structure which is closed in the circumferential direction and partly as a polygonal structure (emitter finger 28 ) which is closed in the circumferential direction and which extends radially outwards from the ring structure.

[0142] It should be understood that the fingering of the turn-on structure 23 and the corresponding fingering of the trigger structure 26, here the corresponding fingering of the gate electrode 26, can of course take many other conceivable embodiments. Therefore, the number of turn-on structure fingers 28 or trigger structure fingers 27 is not limited to Figure 3The number shown in FIG. 2 is four. There may be more fingers or fewer fingers. The direction of the fingers 28 or 27 is not limited to Figure 3 The straight line of the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. This line can also be curved, for example. In addition, it is conceivable that from each finger 28 or 27, one or more branched finger segments can also extend away from each finger 28 or 27. Figure 3 The fingers 28 or 27 shown in FIG. 1 and thus form one or more branched fingers.

[0143] from Figure 3 As can be seen from the illustration in FIG. 2 , the trigger structure 26 has a trigger structure finger 27 that corresponds to, that is, follows the shape or contour of the contact structure finger 28. Due to the uniform spacing between the trigger structure 26 and the contact structure 23 over the entire path of the finger-shaped contact structure 23, in particular in the lateral direction here, this embodiment ensures a uniform electrical effect of the trigger structure 26 on the contact structure 23.

[0144] The finger-shaped contact structure 23 has the major advantage that the contacted or triggered region of the short-circuited semiconductor device 22 can be distributed over a larger area. The lateral extension of the contact structure fingers 28 from the rest of the contact structure 23 near the center, that is, the radial finger length L of the contact structure SF In this case, it is preferably chosen to be smaller than W EV / 2. In the exemplary embodiment of the short-circuit semiconductor device 22 shown here, this also applies to the radial finger length of the trigger structure finger 27. This measure helps to make the melting area 21 (see Figure 2 ) is kept away from the center 13 of the semiconductor body 16 and thus from the gate electrode 26 and on the other hand is also sufficiently far away from the radial outer edge of the short-circuit semiconductor component 22. Figure 3 The central region 13 in the exemplary embodiment of the short-circuit semiconductor component 22 shown in FIG. 1 is not contacted or covered by the electrode 24 and is therefore not covered by the thick contact pad 18 ( Figure 2 ) is in contact or covered, so that the plasma in the center 13 can be guided to the electrical lead-in to the gate terminal G and to the metal tube in the ceramic package (not shown) and destroy the package there. This is achieved by short-circuiting the semiconductor device 22 at Figure 3 The exemplary embodiment shown in is reliably prevented because alloying 21 ( Figure 2 ) is always triggered in the region of emitter structure 23 covered by electrode 24 in the event of a short circuit.

[0145] Figure 4 2 shows a vertical cross-section through another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor device 29 according to the present invention, which has two turn-on structures 30 and 31 and a trigger structure 20 (gate electrode). Figure 4 As can be seen in FIG. 1 , the short-circuit semiconductor device 29 in the semiconductor body 32 has an n-doped front contact structure or emitter structure 30 with a lateral front electrode width W. EV In comparison, the lateral emitter structure width W of the emitter structure SV Chosen than in Figure 2 The short-circuit semiconductor device 15 in is significantly smaller. Figure 4 As can be seen in FIG. 1 , in this exemplary embodiment, the emitter structure 30 is not as Figure 2 The short circuit 12 as shown in FIG. The switch-on structure or emitter structure 30 can be designed as a ring structure and / or polygonal structure that is closed in the circumferential direction, and the ring structure and / or polygonal structure surrounds the trigger structure 20 at a certain radial spacing. Similarly, the emitter structure 30 protrudes slightly beyond the electrode 10 on the radial inner side of the electrode 10 facing the center 13, as has been described in conjunction with FIG. Figure 2 The emitter structure in 17 is as described below.

[0146] In addition to the trigger structure 20 formed by the gate electrode 20 and arranged at the center 13 of the semiconductor body 32, the semiconductor body 32 also has a second contact structure 31 in the form of a breakdown structure 31, which in this exemplary embodiment is designed as a circumferentially closed, annular BOD structure. With the help of the breakdown structure 31, the short-circuit semiconductor component 29 can also be switched on depending on the operating voltage applied to the electrode terminals EV and ER, in the exemplary embodiment shown, in the case of a negative polarity applied to the back electrode 11 relative to the front electrode 10. The breakdown structure is also used to additionally prevent blocking faults in the radially outer edge region of the short-circuit semiconductor component 29 in the event of an unforeseen overvoltage applied to the electrode terminals EV and ER.

[0147] As from Figure 4 As can be seen in , the breakdown structure 31 is located on the side of the semiconductor body 32 that is opposite to the front emitter structure 30 and is therefore a back contact structure 31 that short-circuits the semiconductor component 29. In this case, the breakdown voltage of the breakdown structure 31 is dimensioned such that it has its lowest value of the entire semiconductor body 32 exactly at the location where it is arranged and thus also prevents breakdown in the outer edge regions of the semiconductor body 32. Figure 4The radius of curvature of the pn junction in the region marked with reference numeral 33, that is to say its geometric curvature, is related to the specific resistance and the diameter D of the breakdown structure 31. i (Inner diameter) and D a The breakdown voltage is determined in a manner known per se, as described, for example, in DE 4215378 C1. R In the case of an overvoltage occurring on the upper side (negative polarity at the back electrode terminal ER), a sharp increase in the blocking current flowing between the main terminals EV and ER occurs in the region 33 from a certain voltage. In this case, the current density reaches such a high value that a local melting channel is formed at the end between the two main terminals EV and ER. The blocking capacity of the npnp structure collapses and the short-circuit current leads to alloying in the region of the BOD structure 31.

[0148] Because in Figure 4 The breakdown structure 31 in the exemplary embodiment of the short-circuit semiconductor device 29 shown in FIG. 1 is a back-side contact structure, which is embedded in the back-side base region 6, on which the back-side electrode 11 is applied, so that the lateral back-side contact structure width W of the breakdown structure 31 is SR The lateral back electrode width W of the back electrode 11 ER The ratio of SR / W ER <1, in Figure 4 This is clearly the case in the short-circuit semiconductor component 29 shown in FIG.

[0149] As from Figure 4 As can be seen in FIG. 1 , the lateral contact structure width W of the breakdown structure 31 is determined over such a lateral region of the base region 6 . SR , i.e. the geometry of the pn junction formed between the base region 6 and the inner region 7 in this lateral region relative to the geometry of the remaining pn junctions, i.e. relative to the width W of the lateral back contact structure. SR The geometry of the pn junction outside the determined region is significantly altered. In this case, it should be understood in particular that an altered geometry of the pn junction in the sense of the invention only exists if the changes are definitely not due to tolerance deviations in the production of the base region 6 and the inner region 7, which are determined by the production conditions, but are the result of a targeted process.

[0150] exist Figure 4The breakdown structure 31 of the short-circuit semiconductor device 29 shown in FIG. 1 has an annular shape surrounding the center 13 of the semiconductor body 32 and is therefore radially spaced from the center 13. In particular, in the short-circuit semiconductor device 29, the breakdown structure 31 of the short-circuit semiconductor device 29 is Figure 4 In the exemplary embodiment shown in , the breakdown structure or back contact structure 31 is completely covered by the front electrode 10 and the back electrode 11. Complete front and back covering of the breakdown structure 31 has the following advantage: Due to the local limitation of the alloying in the area surrounding the breakdown structure 31 covered on both sides by the electrodes 10 and 11, the escape of plasma from the semiconductor body 16 is reliably prevented.

[0151] However, in principle, it is also possible to arrange a breakdown structure 31 which acts as a contact structure in the center 13 of the semiconductor body 32, as is also described, for example, in DE 4215378 C1. Figure 4 In the case not shown in FIG. 1 , the breakdown structure 31 is likewise covered by the respective electrodes 10 and 11 both on the front side 5 and on the back side 4 of the semiconductor body 32 in order to achieve the same effects with regard to the plasma escape as described above. In other words, a short-circuiting semiconductor component having at least one centrally arranged contact structure, in particular a breakdown structure designed as a contact structure, does not require a trigger structure arranged there, as for example in FIG. Figure 4 The gate electrode 20 shown in FIG. 3 has a gate terminal G. Since the breakdown structure 31 obtains a turn-on signal from a voltage applied to the electrode terminals EV and ER, an additional external turn-on signal input can be omitted.

[0152] At this point it should be noted that Figure 4 The breakdown structure 31 shown as a BOD structure can also be replaced by any other breakdown structure which is well known per se and has a similar effect, provided that the breakdown structure is designed as a switch-on structure for initiating alloying of the corresponding short-circuited semiconductor component in dependence on a switch-on signal, which in the case of a breakdown structure integrated into the semiconductor body is always implicitly generated by the voltage applied to the external electrodes 10 and 11. Such other breakdown structures are, for example, breakdown structures with du / dt protection known per se or breakdown structures with reverse recovery time protection known per se, which have a locally increased charge carrier lifetime. This will be discussed in conjunction with the present invention in the following. Fig.10 and 11 Still another breakdown structure as an alternative to the breakdown structure 31 will be further described with reference to FIG.

[0153] Figure 5A vertical cross-section through yet another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor device according to the invention having two contact structures 35, 36 and two trigger structures 37, 38 is shown. The two contact structures 35 and 36 are each designed as an n-doped emitter structure, which is respectively embedded in the front base region 8 or the back base region 6 of the semiconductor body 39. The contact structures or emitter structures 35, 36 can be designed as a ring structure and / or a polygonal structure that is closed in the circumferential direction. As can be seen from Figure 5 As can be clearly seen in FIG. 1 , the two emitter structures 35 and 36 each protrude slightly beyond the radial inner edge of the respective electrode 10 or 10 facing the respective center 13. The two trigger structures 37 and 38 are each designed as a gate electrode 37, 38, each of which has a front gate terminal or a rear gate terminal G. V or G R , wherein the front gate electrode 37 is arranged in the center 13 of the front base region 8 in an electrically contacting manner with the front base region 8 and the gate electrode 38 is arranged in the center 13 of the back base region 6. Figure 5 In the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 2 , the two contact structures 35 , 36 have the same lateral contact structure width W. SV or W SR , but this is not absolutely necessary. In the short-circuited semiconductor device 34, the lateral electrode width W of the front electrode 10 and the back electrode 11 is EV and W ER The short-circuit semiconductor device 34 is thus constructed completely symmetrically with respect to the vertical direction. EV and W ER Significantly larger than the corresponding transverse connection structure width W SV and W SR , so the condition W SV / W EV <1 and W SR / W ER <1 also applies to the short-circuit semiconductor device 34. Therefore, the short-circuit semiconductor device 34 can be turned on not only by the electrical turn-on signal input to the front gate terminal Gv but also by the electrical turn-on signal input to the back gate terminal GR.

[0154] Figure 6A vertical cross-section through yet another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor device according to the invention with a switch-on structure 41 and a trigger structure 42 is shown. In a semiconductor body 43, the switch-on structure 41 is embedded in the front base region 8 as an n-doped front emitter structure 41 with a short circuit 12. In this exemplary embodiment, the trigger structure 42 is designed as a light-sensitive region 42 in the center 13 of the front base region 8. In this case, the switch-on signal input from the outside to the trigger structure or the light-sensitive region 42 is an optical switch-on signal 44. The switch-on structure or emitter structure 41 can be designed as a ring structure and / or a polygonal structure that is closed in the circumferential direction and as in Figure 6 As can be seen in FIG. 4 , it can protrude slightly beyond the radial inner edge of the electrode 10 facing the center 13. Suitable light sources for generating the light signal 44 are lasers or, particularly preferably, cost-effective LEDs.

[0155] As from Figure 6 As can be seen in FIG. 1 , an amplifying gate structure AG is connected after the photosensitive region 42 arranged at the center 13 in a manner extending radially outward, which is functionally coupled to the photosensitive region 42 and is multi-stage here. The photosensitive region 42 arranged at the center 13 is assigned to the first AG stage (the radially innermost AG stage) and is arranged within the first AG stage, which has no metallization layer, so that the optical signal 44 can penetrate into the silicon of the semiconductor body 43. Since the optical signal 44 is coupled here, the first AG stage is also called the photogate 42, and the diameter of the first AG stage has a value in the range of about 1-2 mm. Due to the very small size compared to the gate electrode, the photogate 42 is protected by a current limiting resistor R integrated in the p-doped front base region 8 to avoid being destroyed when the short-circuited semiconductor device 40 is turned on, and the current limiting resistor is also implemented as in a conventional light-triggerable thyristor (LTT). Without this resistor R, there is the risk that the short-circuited semiconductor component 40 is destroyed not in the region of the n-doped front emitter structure 41 covered by the front electrode 10 and the contact pad 18 contacting the front electrode, but in a non-contacted region in the photogate 42, which could lead to plasma escape there in the event of a short circuit in the short-circuited semiconductor component 40. The current-limiting resistor R therefore ensures that in the event of a switch-on triggered by the optical signal 44 (in the event of a short circuit of the semiconductor component 40), the switch-on structure 41, here the emitter structure 41, is always switched on before a fault or a damage occurs in the region between the trigger structure 42 and the switch-on structure 41, which is not contacted by the contact pad 18.

[0156] It is also conceivable to have a short-circuit semiconductor device (not shown) which can be controlled not only electrically but also optically, that is to say can be switched on. Accordingly, the short-circuit semiconductor device will have two trigger structures connected in parallel, i.e. not only gate electrodes but also light-sensitive areas. Such a structure is described in more detail, for example, in DE 102004025082 B4. In this case, the photogate, like the photogate 42 of the short-circuit semiconductor device 40, is located in the center 13 of the corresponding semiconductor body and is also connected upstream via a current-limiting resistor R, as in Figure 6 As shown in , to protect from excessive surge current. In this case, the gate terminal for electrical connection of the on signal contacts a ring of a metallized layer, which is radially located outside the resistor R and surrounds the photogate.

[0157] About Figure 6 In the illustration of the short-circuit semiconductor device 40, it should also be noted that instead of the external input turn-on signal, for example, instead of Figure 6 In the case of the optical switch-on signal 44 shown in FIG. 4 , a breakdown structure (not shown) as already described herein can also be arranged as a trigger structure in the region of the first AG stage close to the center, wherein the breakdown structure, as already described in various places in the present invention, is designed, for example, as a BOD structure and / or as a breakdown structure with du / dt protection and / or as a breakdown structure with reverse recovery time protection with a local increase in the charge carrier lifetime. In this case, the alloying of such a short-circuited semiconductor component will be triggered by reaching or exceeding a breakdown voltage determined for the provided breakdown structure, which directly depends on the voltage applied to the external electrodes 10 and 11, wherein the avalanche current control of the breakdown structure in this case, that is to say, switching on one or more amplifying gates AG forming an AG structure, which then in turn switches on the switch-on structure, for example an emitter structure, in order to finally initiate the alloying of the short-circuited semiconductor component, which in the case of the short-circuited semiconductor component according to the invention always takes place in the region of the switch-on structure covered by the respective electrode 10 or 11. It should be noted that the breakdown structure which is arranged close to the center and radially within the first AG level is not covered in this case by the corresponding main electrode, that is, the electrode 10 or 11 (which is applied to the base region containing the breakdown structure) and the contact plate 18 or 19 in contact with the electrode, because the AG structure is arranged between the breakdown structure and the main electrode 10 or 11 along the radial direction r.

[0158] At this point it should be noted that Figure 6 The amplification gate structure AG shown in can be combined with all the trigger structures described in this article alone, or can also be combined with two or more different types of trigger structures. Figure 6 As shown in , the AG structure can have only one single AG stage or can also have multiple AG stages. However, the provision of the AG stage is not absolutely necessary. Therefore, for example, in the case of ensuring a sufficiently powerful switch-on signal, the AG structure for amplifying the switch-on signal can be omitted, such as, for example, in the case of an optical switch-on signal input to a light-sensitive area designed as a trigger structure, the optical switch-on signal has an optical power greater than or equal to about 1000 mW.

[0159] Figure 7 4 shows a vertical cross-section through another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor device 45 according to the invention having two contact structures 30 and 46 and two trigger structures 20 and 47. In a semiconductor body 48, the back contact structure 46 is formed as a short circuit 12 and a lateral back contact structure width W. SR The n-doped emitter structure 46 is embedded in the back base region 6 adjacent to the back side 4 and is conductively contacted and completely covered by the back electrode 11. The contact structure or emitter structure 46 can be designed as a ring structure and / or a polygonal structure that is closed in the circumferential direction. In the same lateral area of ​​the contact structure 46, but offset in the vertical direction v with the contact structure, a back trigger structure 47 designed as a breakdown structure, for example, designed as a BOD structure, is arranged. As already described in conjunction with Figure 4 As described below, when the breakdown voltage determined for the breakdown structure 47 is reached or exceeded, which breakdown voltage directly depends on the voltage applied to the external electrodes 10 and 11 and serves as a switch-on signal, a steep, locally limited current increase occurs in the region 33, which current increase is Figure 7 In the example of the short-circuit semiconductor device 45 shown in FIG. 4 , a back emitter structure 46 is used for switching on, whereby alloying of the short-circuit semiconductor device 45 is ultimately initiated. Figure 4 , which is designed as a breakdown structure, in which the melting channel starting from the breakdown structure 31 for alloying is locally narrowly limited, the arrangement of the emitter structure 46 as a contact structure connected by the breakdown structure 47 has the following advantages: the alloyed area is laterally widened. Due to the lateral widening of the melting channel, the emitter structure 46 helps to make the alloying "softer". In addition, due to the reduced line resistance, the larger alloyed area in the semiconductor body 48 allows higher short-circuit currents to be permanently conducted with lower line losses.

[0160] Figure 8 4 shows a vertical cross-section through yet another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor device 49 according to the invention having two contact structures 31 and 50. In the semiconductor body 51, between the back base region 6 and the inner region 7, a Figure 4 The breakdown structure 31 as a back-side contact structure is shown in the figure, and a front-side contact structure 50 which is also designed as a breakdown structure is arranged between the front base region 8 and the inner region 7. The two breakdown structures 31 and 50 are respectively designed as a closed, annular BOD structure in the circumferential direction in an exemplary manner. The inner diameter Di* and the outer diameter Da* of the breakdown structure 50 can be different from the inner diameter Di and the outer diameter Da of the breakdown structure 31, respectively. In this case, the breakdown structures 31 and 50 can be designed for different breakdown voltages. However, this is not absolutely necessary, so the two breakdown structures 31 and 50 can also be designed identically, and therefore the same breakdown voltage can be specified for the two breakdown structures.

[0161] Since the breakdown structure is only broken down from a breakdown voltage of a certain polarity determined according to a specific embodiment of the breakdown structure, among other things, Figure 8 The embodiment of the short-circuit semiconductor device 49 shown in the figure has the advantage that, by means of two breakdown structures 31 and 50 arranged in the semiconductor body 51, one of which is assigned to the front base region 8 and the other is assigned to the back base region 6, once the corresponding breakdown structure 31 or 50 is broken down when its respective breakdown voltage is exceeded, the short-circuit semiconductor device 49 can be alloyed not only for a voltage with a first polarity applied to the main electrodes 10 and 11 but also for a voltage with a second polarity opposite to the first polarity applied to the main electrodes 10 and 11.

[0162] In addition, Figure 8 It can be seen in FIG. 1 that both the front electrode 10 and the back electrode 11 completely cover the respective center 13, since no additional external switch-on signal has to be input to the short-circuit semiconductor component 49. Figure 8 , the two breakdown structures 31 and 50 are shown to be arranged spaced apart from the center 13 , but it is self-evident that in this case one or both breakdown structures 31 and 50 can also be arranged directly at the respective center 13 and have the advantages already described here.

[0163] Fig. 9 4 and 5. A vertical cross-section through yet another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor device 52 according to the invention is shown with two turn-on structures 46 and 53 and two trigger structures 47 and 54. The semiconductor body 55 is embedded from the back side with a Figure 7A contact structure 46 designed as an emitter structure is shown, as well as a trigger structure 47 on the back side designed as a breakdown structure and electrically operatively connected to the contact structure. From the front side, in a similar manner, a front contact structure 53 designed as an n-doped emitter structure is embedded in the front base region 8 adjacent to the front side 5 and is electrically contacted by the front electrode 10. The front emitter structure 53 is assigned a front trigger structure 54, which is likewise designed as a breakdown structure and switches on the emitter structure 53 in the event of breakdown. The mode of action of the combination of the front emitter structure 53 and the front breakdown structure 54 corresponds to the combination of the back emitter structure 46 and the back breakdown structure 47, and has already been described in combination. Figure 7 The two contact structures or emitter structures 46, 53 and the two trigger structures 47, 54 can be respectively designed as a ring structure and / or a polygonal structure that is closed in the circumferential direction.

[0164] As in accordance with Figure 8 As already mentioned in the exemplary embodiment of the short-circuit semiconductor component 49 , the contact structures and triggering structures 46 , 53 , 46 , 54 of the short-circuit semiconductor component 52 can also be arranged exactly centrally, ie on the respective center 13 .

[0165] Fig.10 2 shows a vertical cross-section through another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor device 56 according to the invention having two connection structures 30 and 57 and a trigger structure 20. In the semiconductor body 58, in addition to the Figure 4 In addition to the known front contact structure 30, a back contact structure 57 of yet another design structure in the form of a breakdown structure is also embedded. Fig.10 It can be clearly seen in FIG. 5 that the rear contact structure 57 is locally limited, in particular in the radial direction r, and therefore has a lateral structure width W SR The lateral structure width is significantly smaller than the lateral electrode width W of the assigned back electrode 11. ER , as is the case for all lateral contact structure widths disclosed herein relative to the corresponding lateral electrode widths of the respective electrodes of the short-circuit semiconductor component according to the invention.

[0166] In addition, from Fig.10 It can be seen that the back base region 6 has a flat p-type region facing the back side 4 and is highly p-doped compared to the region facing the inner region 7. ++ Area. Corresponding to the lateral connection structure width W SR In a lateral portion, the n-type doped n-type region 7 will be significantly more highly n-doped relative to the n-type doped inner region 7. ++The region is inserted into the generally p-doped region of the back base region 6. ++ The region extends in the vertical direction v into the inner region 7. Due to the highly doped p ++ The area to be inserted is n ++ The region is spaced apart from the back side 4 contacted by the electrode 11, so that the back side 4 of the semiconductor body 58 (on which the back side electrode 11 is applied) does not reach the n ++ The back base region 6 p ++ The concentration of the region is selected to be higher than the n-type region which interrupts the p-type region of the base region 6. ++ region to prevent a short circuit between the inner region 7 and the back electrode 11.

[0167] For Fig.10 The breakdown structure 57 shown in FIG. 1 can also be set to a breakdown voltage in a targeted manner, for example by selecting a weakly n-doped inner region 7 and / or a highly doped n-type inner region 7. ++ The doping concentration of the p-doped base region 6, in particular the highly doped p-type base region 6, which separates the breakdown structure 57 in the direction of the back side 4 of the semiconductor body 58, is preferably 0. ++ The doping concentration of the region, wherein the breakdown structure 57 has an n ++ region and / or base region 6 p ++ The higher the concentration of the region is chosen, the lower the breakdown voltage of breakdown structure 57 . In this way, a breakdown voltage in a range well below 10 V up to the maximum possible blocking capability of semiconductor body 58 can be determined.

[0168] Fig.11 In views (a), (b) and (c), the Fig.10 The concentration distribution of the short-circuit semiconductor device 56 along the concentration distribution line Na, Nb or Nc shown there. Fig.11 a shows the Fig.10 The concentration distribution of Na is shown in the distribution line. Fig.11 b shows the concentration distribution along the distribution line Nb and Fig.11 The concentration distribution along the distribution line Nc is shown in c. The route Nc is shown. Fig.11 In the respective concentration profiles of a, 11b and 11c, the penetration depth x of the respective dopant in μm is plotted on the corresponding abscissa. The ordinate shows the penetration depth x of the respective dopant in μm per cm -3 The concentration N.

[0169] exist Fig.11 a shows the Fig.10The concentration profile of the distribution line Na shown in FIG. 5 extends from the front side 5 of the semiconductor body 58 through the front side contact structure or emitter structure 30 and the front side base region 8 into the inner region 7. Fig.11 In a, starting from x=0, a flat profile distribution can be seen, that is, a distribution with a small penetration depth (here less than about 20 μm), for example, a distribution with a high concentration (up to about 1E20 cm) doped with phosphorus, represented in the form of a dotted curve. -3 ) ++ Emitter structure 30. Next is the increasing penetration depth x (from about 20 μm to about 40 μm) of the concentration profile of the p-base region 8, doped, for example, with boron, as a solid curve. Fig.10 In the short-circuit semiconductor device 56 shown in FIG. 1 , upstream of the first p-region doped with boron in the base region 8, a further p-region doped with aluminum (Al) in the base region 8 with a significantly lower concentration (eg, at about 1 E1 3 to approximately 1 E1 5 cm -3 The second p region between Fig.11 However, such an Al profile in the base region 8 is not absolutely necessary. Fig.11 In the concentration profile of a, with further increasing penetration depth x (starting here from about 100 μm), there is the profile of the weakly n-doped inner region 7, which has a substantially constant concentration (here about 1E13 cm -3 ).

[0170] exist Fig.11 b shows the Fig.10 The concentration profile of the distribution line Nb shown in FIG. 5 extends from the rear side 4 of the semiconductor body 58 through the rear side base region 6 and the rear side contact structure or breakdown structure 57 into the inner region 7. Fig.11 In b, starting from x=0, the base region 6, represented by a solid curve, can first be seen, for example, with boron doped p ++ A very shallow profile distribution of the area, which has preferably about 5E18cm -3 The following is done by doping the n-type carbon nanotubes, for example with boron or arsenic, with a gradually increasing penetration depth x. ++ The concentration distribution of the connection structure or the breakdown structure 57 is Fig.11 b is shown as a dotted curve. Fig.11 It can be clearly seen in b that the highly doped n ++The concentration N of the breakdown structure 57 is significantly lower than the p-value of the base region 6 applied upstream from the rear side. ++ The concentration N of the region 57 changes with further increasing penetration depth x into the concentration profile of the weakly n-doped inner region 7 .

[0171] exist Fig.11 c shows the Fig.10 The concentration distribution of the distribution line Nc shown in FIG. 5 extends from the back side 4 of the semiconductor body 58 through the back side base region 6 into the inner region 7. Fig.11 In c, starting from x=0, we can first see the p-type of the base region 6, which is represented by a solid curve and is doped with boron here. ++ A very flat profile distribution of the area, preferably about 5 E1 8cm -3 A high concentration of and preferably a penetration depth of about 5 to 20 μm. This is followed by a concentration profile of the remaining p-doped base region 6 with a significantly lower concentration N (here less than 1E16 cm -3 ), the concentration distribution is Fig.11 c is shown as a dotted curve. Fig.11 As in a), the rear base region 6 also has a p-region applied upstream of the base region 6 in the direction of the inner region 7 and weakly doped, for example, with aluminum Al, which has a relative humidity of approximately 1E15 cm -3 concentration up to a penetration depth x of about 100 μm, as in Fig.11 c is shown by means of a dashed curve. However, such an Al-doped p-region of the base region 6 is not absolutely necessary. Fig.11 As shown in FIG. 1 b , this region following the base region 6 is again followed by a weakly n-doped inner region 7 .

[0172] It is particularly preferred that the front base region 8 and / or the back base region 6 is Fig.10 In the region of the concentration profiles Na and Nc given in FIG. 1 , a penetration depth or thickness of at least 50 μm, for example about 100 μm, is provided, for example, Fig.11 a and 11c.

[0173] As mentioned above Fig.10 As already mentioned in the description of the present invention, the adjustable breakdown voltage of the breakdown structure 57 in the blocking direction is determined by the number of additionally introduced donor atoms, which are formed in the Fig.10 The n shown in ++The breakdown structure 57. The greater the concentration, the lower the breakdown voltage. It is also determined that ++ The p-type doped back base region 6 at the transition to the breakdown structure 57 ++ The concentration of the region and the direction of n ++ The p of the base region 6 at the transition to the breakdown structure 57 ++ The distribution of the concentration of the contour (see Fig.11 b) The breakdown voltage is also determined: at p from the base region 6 ++ Region to breakdown structure 57 n ++ The flatter the gradient of the concentration profile at the transition between the base region and the base region, the greater the blocking capability, other conditions being equal. Thus, for example, in a flat, highly doped p-type base region 6, the base region 6 has a higher blocking capability. ++ After the inward diffusion of the region, it can be ++ The driving time of the region adjusts the blocking capability of the breakdown structure 57 because as the driving time increases, the p ++ Region to breakdown structure 57 n ++ The concentration gradient at the transition of the regions becomes flatter, which increases the breakdown voltage. Therefore, for a very low breakdown voltage of the breakdown structure 57, a very shallow (low penetration depth x) and very highly doped p-type base region 6 must be produced. ++ For example, for an assumed breakdown voltage of about 30 V, a value of about 5E16 cm -3 The breakdown structure of 57n ++ The average concentration of the region.

[0174] The blocking capability of the breakdown structure 57 can be adjusted within a wide range. However, when the concentration becomes very small and approaches the concentration of the weakly n-doped inner region 7, which can have a value as small as 1E14 cm for a high blocking semiconductor device, for example. -3 If, on the other hand, the blocking capability of the breakdown structure 57 differs significantly from the maximum possible blocking capability of the short-circuit semiconductor component 56 (which is predetermined by the silicon thickness Wn and the concentration N of the weakly doped inner region 7), i.e., if this maximum possible blocking capability is, for example, less than 100 V, then the breakdown voltage of the breakdown structure 57 can be adjusted very well, wherein, if the ratio of the blocking capability of the short-circuit semiconductor component 56 to the blocking capability of the breakdown structure 57 is in the range of approximately 50 to approximately 100, then the required blocking capability of the short-circuit semiconductor component 56 will be significantly higher than 1000 V.

[0175] exist Fig.10The breakdown structure 57 described in the embodiment of the present invention can be used as a connection structure and / or a trigger structure in the short-circuit semiconductor device according to the present invention in the same manner as other breakdown structures described herein. The connection structure or breakdown structure 57 of the short-circuit semiconductor device 56 can be designed as a ring structure and / or a polygonal structure that is closed in the circumferential direction.

[0176] Fig.12 2 shows a vertical cross-section through another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor device 59 according to the present invention having two turn-on structures 30 and 57 and two trigger structures 20 and 60. In the semiconductor body 61, in addition to Fig.10 In addition to the exemplary embodiment of the short-circuit semiconductor device 56 shown in FIG, the front-side breakdown structure designed as a trigger structure 60 is arranged below the front-side trigger structure 20 designed as a gate electrode 20 in the vertical direction v. Fig.12 As can be seen in FIG. 5 , the trigger structure 60 has the same structure as the back contact structure 57. In order to embed the breakdown structure 60 into the front base region 8, the front base region 8 is divided into a highly doped flat p-type region facing the front side 5, just like the back base region 6. ++ region and the usual p region facing the inner region 7, so that p ++ The region is arranged between the gate electrode 20 and the breakdown structure 60 in the vertical direction v. ++ A front emitter structure 30 is embedded in the front base region 8 adjacent to the front side 5 and is contacted in an electrically conductive manner by the front electrode 10 .

[0177] Accordingly, in Fig.12 In the short-circuit semiconductor component 59 shown in FIG, the front side contact structure 30 can be switched on not only by an electrical switch-on signal input from the outside to the gate terminal G, but also by a trigger structure 60 if the blocking voltage applied thereto, which is predetermined by the voltage applied to the main electrodes 10 and 11, exceeds the breakdown voltage specified for the breakdown structure 60. In this case, the breakdown current at the breakdown structure 60 increases to such an extent that it switches on the contact structure 30 embedded in the same base region 8, which ultimately leads to the desired alloying of the short-circuit semiconductor component 59.

[0178] exist Fig.12In the case of the combination of two trigger structures 20 and 60 shown in FIG. 1 , which are arranged at or in the same base region (here the front base region 8 ), it should be understood that the trigger sensitivity or the switch-on sensitivity of the switch-on structure (here the emitter structure 30 ) associated with the two trigger structures 20 and 60 and connected downstream is adapted to the switch-on current that can be provided by the trigger structure 20 or 60 , wherein the minimum switch-on current that can be provided by the trigger structure is decisive. In other words, in Fig.12 In the example shown in FIG. 1 , due to the presence of the trigger structure designed as a breakdown structure 60, the switch-on structure 30 generally only provides a switch-on current in the mA range. The switch-on structure 30 is designed for a minimum switch-on current in the range of significantly less than 1A, preferably about 50 mA, starting from this minimum switch-on current, the switch-on structure 30 is reliably switched on, so that the blocking current generated by the breakdown structure 60 in the case of a breakdown can reliably switch on the switch-on structure 30 by the breakdown structure 60, without itself being destroyed in the process. This can happen, that is, if the trigger sensitivity or the switch-on sensitivity of the switch-on structure 30 is selected too high. Then, although the emitter structure 30 can be triggered by an external switch-on signal in the range of about 1A input via the gate electrode 20, the breakdown structure 60 arranged below the gate electrode 20 will be destroyed in the process, because the breakdown structure will be overloaded at the switch-on current of 1A applied via the gate electrode 20. Since the trigger structure 60 is not located in the region of the semiconductor body 61 covered by the electrode 10 and the contact pad 18, such a destruction of the trigger structure 60 may lead to the escape of the plasma in the region of the uncovered center 13, but this is achieved by Fig.12 In the exemplary embodiment of the short-circuit semiconductor component 59 shown in FIG. 5 , the above-described design of the contact structure 30 with regard to its contact sensitivity is reliably avoided.

[0179] Fig.13 A partial top view of yet another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor component 62 according to the present invention is shown, the short-circuit semiconductor component having a contact structure 63 and a trigger structure 20, the contact structure having a contact structure section 64 open in the circumferential direction u of the semiconductor body. Fig.13 In the top view of FIG. , only the front base region 8 of the semiconductor body can be seen. Fig.13 In the view of FIG. 1 , the front electrode 10 is not shown, but only its radial inner edge 65 is shown, so that the contact structure 63 arranged below the electrode 10 and designed as an emitter structure can be seen. Fig.13As can be seen from FIG. 6 , in this exemplary embodiment, there is a radial spacing between the emitter structure 63 or the emitter structure segment 64 and the trigger structure or the gate electrode 20. As can be further seen, in this case, the contact structure 63 is not closed in the circumferential direction u of the semiconductor body, that is, in Fig.13 The contact structure 63 of the short-circuit semiconductor component 62 shown in FIG. 1 does not have a closed ring structure and / or a polygonal structure. The contact structure section 64 has a lateral emitter structure width W SV and a circumferential emitter structure width WUV extending in the circumferential direction u. The circumferential emitter structure width WUV is smaller than the circumferential contact structure width, which would correspond to a closed annular structure and / or polygonal structure of the contact structure, and thus to a circumferential angle of 360 degrees for the closed annular and / or polygonal contact structure.

[0180] exist Fig.13 In the exemplary embodiment of the short-circuit semiconductor device 62 shown in FIG. 5 , the turn-on current for turning on the turn-on structure 63 is specified to be in the range of about 2 A, preferably between about 1 A and about 5 A. SV The size of the contact structure 63 can now be chosen to be large enough that it does not cause any problems in terms of process technology, ie, it can be formed with a sufficient width W. SV To achieve this. If W SV If it is chosen too small, the problem arises that the radially inner electrode edge 65 no longer reliably and sufficiently precisely covers the emitter structure 64 which is highly n-doped there, wherein the structure width W in the circumferential direction is uv In this case it is not critical. Fig.13 In the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. , due to the size W compared to a closed annular structure and / or a polygonal structure, SV and W UV Relatively small, a relatively small melting current can therefore be achieved in a particularly advantageous manner, wherein the switch-on current required for switching the switch-on structure 63 can assume relatively large values ​​in the range of approximately 1 A to approximately 5 A with the advantages already described herein.

[0181] It should be understood that, if Fig.13 The short-circuit semiconductor device 62 shown in the figure may also have more than one connection structure 63, which are then distributedly arranged in the circumferential direction u of the semiconductor body, preferably with equidistant spacing from each other, so as to achieve a basically symmetrical structure of this short-circuit semiconductor device in the circumferential direction with the advantages already described in this article.

[0182] Fig.14 A partial top view of yet another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor device 66 according to the present invention is shown. The short-circuit semiconductor device has a turn-on structure 63 and a trigger structure 20. The turn-on structure 63 has a Fig.13 At least one connection structure segment 64 is shown in FIG. Fig.14 The front electrode 10 is not shown in the view of FIG. 1 , but only its radial inner edge 65 in order to be able to see the contact structure 63 which is arranged below the electrode 10 and is designed as an emitter structure.

[0183] As from Fig.14 As can be seen in the figure, in the short-circuit semiconductor component 66, a contact structure 63 is embedded in the p-doped front base region 8, which has a significantly lower p-doping than the base region which is usually doped with p-type. -- The portion 67 is arranged in the p-doped front base region 8, the p -- The portion 67 has a significantly higher resistance relative to the rest of the base region 8. The dopant concentration of the resistive portion 67 is preferably approximately 1E15 cm-1 at a penetration depth of preferably approximately 60 to 120 μm. -3 To about 1E16cm -3 The resistor section 67 has a through-channel 68 opposite the contact structure section 64 , which is formed by the normally doped remaining p-region of the base region 8 and through which the contact structure section 64 is electrically coupled directly to the trigger structure or the gate electrode 20 .

[0184] By Fig.14 The exemplary embodiment of the short-circuit semiconductor component 66 shown in FIG. 1 achieves that, on the one hand, very low melting currents that lead to alloying can be achieved by means of the segment-shaped design of the contact structure 63, for example also in FIG. Fig.13 The same is true for the short-circuit semiconductor device 62 shown in FIG. 1 , and on the other hand, the switch-on current flowing from the trigger structure 20 toward the switch-on structure 63 is directed in a targeted manner to the switch-on structure section 64 so that, if necessary, the switch-on structure section is switched on to initiate alloying. This allows a targeted design of the short-circuit semiconductor device 66, as in FIG. Fig.13 In contrast, the situation in the case of the short-circuit semiconductor component 62 shown in FIG. 5 is such that this design has a switch-on current in the mA range, for example approximately 150 mA.

[0185] By the way, the through-channel 68 can take different shapes, for example, a trapezoidal shape. In the case of a trapezoidal shape, the through-channel 68 is gradually narrowed starting from the trigger structure 20 in the direction of the connection structure segment 64, so as to achieve a more targeted conduction of the connection current flowing through the through-channel 68 to the connection structure segment 64 and thus keep the connection current flowing past the connection structure segment 64 as small as possible.

[0186] Fig.15 Shown along the Fig.14 The section line XX shown in FIG. Fig.14 6 is a vertical cross-sectional view of a short-circuit semiconductor device 66 shown in FIG. It can be seen that in the semiconductor body 69, in particular in the front-side p-doped base region 8, p -- The resistor portion 67 extends laterally between the trigger structure or gate electrode 20 and the inner edge 65 of the front electrode 10. Figure XX The connection structure segment 64 is not visible.

[0187] Fig.16 A partial top view of yet another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor device 70 according to the present invention is shown. The short-circuit semiconductor device 70 substantially corresponds to the short-circuit semiconductor device 70 in FIG. Fig.14 An exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor device 66 is shown in FIG. Fig.16 The contact structure section 64 of the short-circuit semiconductor device 70 in the embodiment of the present invention is electrically connected directly to the trigger structure or gate electrode 20 via a shunt resistor 71 in the form of an n-doped (e.g. phosphorus-doped) area strip arranged in the through-channel 68. The width of the shunt resistor 71 can preferably be set to approximately 55 μm. In this way, the contact structure section 64 of the short-circuit semiconductor device 70 in the embodiment of the present invention is electrically connected directly to the trigger structure or gate electrode 20 via a shunt resistor 71 in the form of an n-doped (e.g. phosphorus-doped) area strip arranged in the through-channel 68. Fig.14 Compared with the short-circuit semiconductor device 66 in the embodiment, the turn-on current required for turning on the turn-on structure 63 can be increased again, for example, in other cases of the same size, it can be increased to about 400 mA, and preferably in the range of about 400 mA to about 1000 mA.

[0188] exist Fig.16 The serpentine shape of the shunt resistor 71 shown in FIG. 1 makes it possible to vary the length of the shunt resistor 71 in a desired manner, so as to thereby adjust the switch-on current almost arbitrarily within the range described above. Fig.16 The length of the serpentine shunt resistor 71 shown in FIG. 6 is set, for example, to a value in the range of about 200 μm or so, ie, for example, a value in the range of about 150 μm to about 250 μm.

[0189] The shunt resistor 71 is directly in electrical contact with the gate electrode 20 by means of its radially inner end. Fig.16 In the case of the short-circuit semiconductor component 70 shown in FIG. 6 , the opposite radially outer end of the shunt resistor 71 leads directly into the emitter structure segment 64 .

[0190] Instead of Fig.16 In the arrangement shown in the through channel 68, the shunt resistor 71 can also be placed above the resistive portion 67. In this case, the radially outer end of the shunt resistor 71 will be directly in electrical contact with the front electrode 10, for example at the electrode edge 65.

[0191] Fig.17 A partial plan view of yet another exemplary embodiment of a short-circuit semiconductor component 72 according to the present invention is shown, which has a contact structure 63 and a trigger structure 20 , the contact structure having a contact structure section 64 which is open in the circumferential direction u of the semiconductor body. Fig.17 The view basically corresponds to Fig.14 The difference is that in Fig.17 In the short-circuit semiconductor device 72 shown in FIG. 8 , an n-doped resistor portion 73 is introduced into the p-doped front base region 8 . The n-doped resistor portion 73 is also referred to as a pinch resistor 73 .

[0192] Fig.18 Shown along the Fig.17 The section line YY shown in Fig.17 , a vertical cross-sectional view of a short-circuit semiconductor device 72 is shown in FIG. In this view, it can be seen that the resistance portion 73 is formed by a pinch resistor, which, as an n-region introduced into the semiconductor body 74 and in particular introduced from the front side 5 into the front base region 8 and adjacent to the front side 5, significantly reduces the effective conductor cross section of the front base region 8 between the trigger structure 20 and the front electrode 10, with the result that the pinch resistor 73 causes an increase in the area-specific resistance in this region of the base region 8. The effect of this resistance increase has already been described above for Figures 14 to 16 Described.

[0193] It should be understood that in conjunction with Figures 13 to 18 The exemplary embodiment of a contact structure 63 with a single contact structure segment 64 described below, in combination with a local increase in resistance in the base region 8 between the trigger structure 20 and the contact structure segment 64, can be combined as desired with all other contact structures and / or trigger structures described herein and thus encompasses further advantageous exemplary embodiments of the invention that are not shown in the drawings. Thus, for example, two contact structures that are spaced apart in the radial direction and electrically insulated from one another can also be provided, for example at least one of which, as in Figures 13 to 18The contact structure segment 63 shown in FIG. 1 is, for example, surrounded by a radially outer, annular and / or polygonally closed, finger-shaped contact structure, which is similar to that in FIG. Figure 3 The contact structure shown in . As a result, the alloyed region produced after contacting the short-circuited semiconductor component can be expanded in an advantageous manner in the radial direction in the region of the semiconductor body covered by the front electrode and / or the back electrode, with the advantages already described herein.

[0194] The short-circuit semiconductor device according to the invention described above is not limited to the embodiments disclosed in this article, but also includes other embodiments that function in the same way, which are generated from other technically meaningful combinations of the features of the short-circuit semiconductor device described in this article. In particular, an npn layer sequence opposite to the pnp structure of the semiconductor body shown in the exemplary embodiment is also conceivable. In this case, the weakly n-doped semiconductor inner region consists of a weakly p-doped inner region, and the front base region and the back base region each consist of an n-doped layer, etc. In this case, the conductivity type of the contact structure described in this article must also be reversed accordingly.

[0195] In a preferred embodiment, the short-circuit semiconductor component according to the invention is used as contact protection or personnel protection and for device protection.

[0196] List of reference numerals:

[0197] 1 Thyristor according to the prior art

[0198] 2 Semiconductor body

[0199] 3 Central axis

[0200] 4 Back

[0201] 5 Front

[0202] 6 Back Base Region

[0203] 7 Internal Area

[0204] 8 Front base region

[0205] 9 Front emitter

[0206] 10. Front electrode

[0207] 11 Back electrode

[0208] 12 Short Circuit

[0209] 13 Front center and back center

[0210] 14 Gate electrode

[0211] 15 Short-circuited semiconductor devices

[0212] 16 Semiconductor body

[0213] 17 Front-connected structure / emitter structure

[0214] 18 Front contact plate

[0215] 19 Back contact pad

[0216] 20 trigger structure, gate electrode

[0217] 21 Alloying

[0218] 22 Short-circuited semiconductor devices

[0219] 23 Finger-shaped connection structure / emitter structure

[0220] 24 Front electrode

[0221] 25 Semiconductor body

[0222] 26 trigger structure, gate electrode

[0223] 27 trigger structure fingers / gate fingers

[0224] 28 23 connection structure finger

[0225] 29 Short-circuit semiconductor devices

[0226] 30 Front-connected structure / emitter structure

[0227] 31 Back-connection structure / breakdown structure

[0228] 32 Semiconductor body

[0229] 33 Critical radius of curvature

[0230] 34 Short-circuit semiconductor devices

[0231] 35 Front-connected structure / emitter structure

[0232] 36 Back-connection structure / emitter structure

[0233] 37 Positive trigger structure / gate electrode

[0234] 38 Back trigger structure / gate electrode

[0235] 39 Semiconductor body

[0236] 40 Short-circuit semiconductor devices

[0237] 41 Front-connected structure / emitter structure

[0238] 42 Positive trigger structure / light sensitive area / photogate

[0239] 43 Semiconductor body

[0240] 44 light signal

[0241] 45 Short-circuit semiconductor devices

[0242] 46 Back-connection structure / emitter structure

[0243] 47 Back trigger structure / breakdown structure

[0244] 48 semiconductor body

[0245] 49 Short-circuit semiconductor devices

[0246] 50 Positive connection structure / breakdown structure

[0247] 51 semiconductor body

[0248] 52 Short-circuit semiconductor devices

[0249] 53 Front-connected structure / emitter structure

[0250] 54 Positive trigger structure / breakdown structure

[0251] 55 semiconductor body

[0252] 56 Short-circuit semiconductor devices

[0253] 57 Back-connection structure / breakdown structure

[0254] 58 semiconductor body

[0255] 59 Short-circuit semiconductor device

[0256] 60 Positive trigger structure / breakdown structure

[0257] 61 Semiconductor body

[0258] 62 Short-circuit semiconductor devices

[0259] 63 Front-connected structure / emitter structure

[0260] 64 Connection structure segment / emitter structure segment

[0261] 65 Radial inner edge

[0262] 66 Short-circuit semiconductor devices

[0263] 67 Resistor Part

[0264] 68 Through Passage

[0265] 69 semiconductor body

[0266] 70 Short-circuit semiconductor device

[0267] 71 Shunt resistor

[0268] 72 Short-circuit semiconductor devices

[0269] 73 Resistor Part / Contraction Resistor

[0270] 74 semiconductor body

[0271] A Anode terminal

[0272] Al Aluminum

[0273] AG Amplifier Gate

[0274] Da The outer diameter of the BOD structure

[0275] Da*Outer diameter of the BOD structure

[0276] Inner diameter of Di BOD structure

[0277] Inner diameter of Di*BOD structure

[0278] E V Front electrode terminal

[0279] E R Back electrode terminal

[0280] G Gate terminal

[0281] G V Front gate terminal

[0282] G R Back gate terminal

[0283] K Cathode terminal

[0284] L SF Radial finger length of the contact structure

[0285] N dopant concentration

[0286] Na concentration distribution line (a)

[0287] Nb concentration distribution line (b)

[0288] Nc concentration distribution line (c)

[0289] r Radial direction / transverse direction

[0290] R Current limiting resistor

[0291] u Circumferential direction

[0292] v Vertical direction

[0293] x Penetration depth

[0294] W E1 According to the prior art, the lateral electrode width

[0295] W ER Lateral back electrode width

[0296] W EV Horizontal front electrode width

[0297] W n Thickness of the inner area

[0298] W n1 The thickness of the inner area according to the prior art

[0299] W S1 According to the prior art, the lateral emitter width

[0300] W SR Horizontal back connection structure width

[0301] W SV Horizontal front connection structure width

[0302] W UV Front access width in circumferential direction

[0303] XX Vertical section line

[0304] YY Vertical section line

Claims

1. A short-circuit semiconductor device, comprising a semiconductor body (16, 25, 32, 39, 43, 48, 51, 55, 58, 61, 69, 74), wherein: In a vertical direction (v), starting from a back side (4) having a back side center (13) determined by its geometric center, in a direction toward a front side (5) opposite to the back side (4) and having a front side center (13) determined by its geometric center, a back side base region (6) of a first conductivity type, an inner region (7) of a second conductivity type complementary to the first conductivity type, and a front side base region (8) of the first conductivity type are arranged in sequence, wherein the back side base region (6) is conductively connected to a back side electrode (11) applied to the back side (4), and the back side electrode has a lateral back side electrode width (W) given by its lateral extension range. ER ), and the front base region (8) is electrically conductively connected to a front electrode (10) applied to the front side (5), the front electrode having a lateral front electrode width (W) given by its lateral extension EV ), wherein at least one front side contact structure (17, 23, 30, 35, 41, 50, 53, 63) is embedded in the front base region (8) and at least partially covered by the front electrode (10), the front side contact structure having a lateral front side contact structure width (W) given by its lateral extension SV ), and / or at least one back side contact structure (31, 36, 46, 57) is embedded in the back side base region (6) and at least partially covered by the back side electrode (11), the back side contact structure having a lateral back side contact structure width (W ) given by its lateral extension. SR ), wherein the contact structure (17, 23, 30, 31, 35, 36, 41, 46, 50, 53, 57, 63) is configured and arranged in such a way that it is switched on as a function of a predeterminable switch-on signal input to the semiconductor body (16, 25, 32, 39, 43, 48, 51, 55, 58, 61, 69, 74) and establishes a permanent, irreversible, electrically conductive, low-resistance connection between the front electrode (10) and the back electrode (11) once and for all, In the case where the front contact structure (17, 23, 30, 35, 41, 50, 53, 63) is present, the width of the lateral front contact structure (W SV ) and the lateral front electrode width (W EV ) is less than 1, and in the presence of the back contact structure (31, 36, 46, 57), the lateral back contact structure width (W SR ) and the lateral back electrode width (W ER ) is less than 1, wherein the switch-on structure is an emitter structure (17, 23, 30, 35, 36, 41, 46, 53, 63) of the second conductivity type, the emitter structure being embedded in the front base region (8) or the back base region (6) and being in conductive contact with an electrode (10, 11) applied to the respective base region (6, 8), the emitter structure being switchable by means of at least one trigger structure (20, 26, 37, 38, 42, 47, 54, 60) acting electrically on the emitter structure via the semiconductor body (16, 25, 32, 39, 43, 48, 51, 55, 58, 61, 69, 74), wherein the trigger structure (20, 26, 37, 38, 42, 47, 54, 60) can in turn be activated by means of the switch-on signal, It is characterized in that The surface resistance of the base region (6, 8) containing the emitter structure (17, 23, 30, 35, 36, 41, 46, 53, 63) is set in such a way that a minimum turn-on current for turning on the emitter structure (17, 23, 30, 35, 36, 41, 46, 53, 63) coming from the turn-on signal and input to the emitter structure (17, 23, 30, 35, 36, 41, 46, 53, 63) has a current strength of at least 1A.

2. The short-circuit semiconductor device according to claim 1, It is characterized in that The current intensity is at least 2A.

3. The short-circuit semiconductor device according to claim 1, It is characterized in that The current intensity is between 5A and 10A.

4. The short-circuit semiconductor device according to claim 1, It is characterized in that The transverse connection structure width (W SV , W SR ) and the corresponding lateral electrode width (W) of the respective electrodes (10, 11) EV , W ER ) is chosen to be less than 4 / 5.

5. The short-circuit semiconductor device according to claim 4, It is characterized in that The transverse connection structure width (W SV , W SR ) and the corresponding lateral electrode width (W) of the respective electrodes (10, 11) EV , W ER ) is chosen to be less than 3 / 4.

6. The short-circuit semiconductor device according to claim 4, It is characterized in that The transverse connection structure width (W SV , W SR ) and the corresponding lateral electrode width (W) of the respective electrodes (10, 11) EV , W ER ) is chosen to be less than 2 / 3.

7. The short-circuit semiconductor device according to claim 4, It is characterized in that The transverse connection structure width (W SV , W SR ) and the corresponding lateral electrode width (W) of the respective electrodes (10, 11) EV , W ER ) is chosen to be less than 1 / 2.

8. The short-circuit semiconductor device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, It is characterized in that The contact structure (31, 46, 50, 53, 57) is completely covered by the front electrode (10) and the back electrode (11).

9. The short-circuit semiconductor device according to any one of the preceding claims 1 to 7, It is characterized in that The front electrode (10) and the back electrode (11) cover the front center (13) or the back center (13) of the semiconductor body (16, 25, 32, 39, 43, 48, 51, 55, 58, 61, 69, 74), and the contact structure (17, 23, 30, 31, 35, 36, 41, 46, 50, 53, 57, 63) is arranged on the corresponding center (13).

10. The short-circuit semiconductor device according to any one of the preceding claims 1 to 7, It is characterized in that The trigger structure is a gate electrode (20, 26, 37, 38), and the turn-on signal is an electrical signal input to the gate electrode (20, 26, 37, 38).

11. The short-circuit semiconductor device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, It is characterized in that The trigger structure is a light-sensitive region (42) arranged in a base region (6, 8) containing the emitter structure (17, 23, 30, 35, 36, 41, 46, 53, 63), and the switch-on signal is a light signal (44) input to the light-sensitive region (42).

12. The short-circuit semiconductor device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, It is characterized in that The trigger structure is a breakdown structure (47, 54, 60), and the turn-on signal is a voltage applied between the front electrode (10) and the back electrode (11).

13. The short-circuit semiconductor device according to any one of the preceding claims 1 to 7, It is characterized in that An amplification gate structure is arranged in a base region (6, 8) containing the emitter structure (17, 23, 30, 35, 36, 41, 46, 53, 63) between the trigger structure (20, 26, 37, 38, 42, 47, 54, 60) and an emitter structure (17, 23, 30, 35, 36, 41, 46, 53, 63) electrically connected to the trigger structure, and the amplification gate structure has at least one amplification gate (AG).

14. A short-circuit semiconductor device according to any one of the preceding claims 1 to 7, It is characterized in that The contact structure (17, 23, 30, 35, 36, 41, 46, 53, 63) is spaced apart from the trigger structure (20, 26, 37, 38, 42, 60) in a radial direction (r) and has at least one contact structure section (64) which is open in a circumferential direction (u) of the semiconductor body (16, 25, 32, 39, 43, 48, 51, 55, 58, 61, 69, 74), the open contact structure section having a contact structure width (W) in the circumferential direction. UV ).

15. The short-circuit semiconductor device according to claim 14, It is characterized in that At least two contact structure sections (64) separated from one another are arranged in a circumferential direction (u) of the semiconductor body (16, 25, 32, 39, 43, 48, 51, 55, 58, 61, 69, 74).

16. The short-circuit semiconductor device according to claim 14, It is characterized in that In addition to at least one through-channel (68) electrically coupling the at least one contact structure segment (64) to the trigger structure (20, 26, 37, 38, 42, 60), the resistance in a base region (6, 8) containing the contact structure (17, 23, 30, 35, 36, 41, 46, 53, 63) is increased at least in a portion (67, 73) of a radial intermediate space between the contact structure (17, 23, 30, 35, 36, 41, 46, 53, 63) and the trigger structure (20, 26, 37, 38, 42, 60).

17. A short-circuit semiconductor device according to any one of the preceding claims 1 to 7, It is characterized in that The connection structure (17, 23, 30, 31, 35, 36, 41, 46, 50, 53, 57, 63) has at least one connection structure finger (28) extending radially outwardly from the rest of the connection structure (17, 23, 30, 31, 35, 36, 41, 46, 50, 53, 57, 63) along a transverse direction (r).

18. The short-circuit semiconductor device according to claim 17, It is characterized in that The trigger structure (20, 26, 37, 38, 42, 47, 54, 60) has at least one trigger structure finger (27) that follows the contour of the at least one switch-on structure finger (28).

19. The short-circuit semiconductor device according to claim 17, It is characterized in that The at least one contact structure finger (28) has a maximum radial finger length (L SF ), the maximum radial finger length (L SF ) is smaller than the lateral electrode width (W) of the electrodes (10, 11) EV , W ER ), the electrodes (10, 11) being applied to the base regions (6, 8) containing the contact structures (17, 23, 30, 31, 35, 36, 41, 46, 50, 53, 57, 63).

20. The short-circuit semiconductor device according to any one of the preceding claims 1 to 7, It is characterized in that The thickness (W) of the inner region (7) in the vertical direction (v) is n ) is greater than 400μm.

21. The short-circuit semiconductor device according to claim 20, It is characterized in that The thickness (W) of the inner region (7) in the vertical direction (v) is n ) is greater than 600μm.

22. The short-circuit semiconductor device according to claim 20, It is characterized in that The thickness (W) of the inner region (7) in the vertical direction (v) is n ) is greater than 800μm.

23. The short-circuit semiconductor device according to claim 20, It is characterized in that The thickness (W) of the inner region (7) in the vertical direction (v) is n ) is greater than 1000μm.

24. A short-circuit semiconductor device according to any one of the preceding claims 1 to 7, It is characterized in that The front electrode (10) and the back electrode (11) are each contact-connected in an electrically conductive manner by means of a metal contact pad (18, 19).

25. The short-circuit semiconductor device according to claim 24, It is characterized in that The lateral width of the respective contact pad (18, 19) corresponds to the lateral electrode width (W) of the corresponding pressure-contacted electrode (10, 11). EV , W ER ).

26. A method for operating a short-circuit semiconductor device (15, 22, 29, 34, 40, 45, 49, 52, 56, 59, 62, 66, 70, 72), the short-circuit semiconductor device comprising a semiconductor body (16, 25, 32, 39, 43, 48, 51, 55, 58, 61, 69, 74), wherein: In a vertical direction (v), starting from a back side (4) having a back side center (13) determined by its geometric center, in a direction toward a front side (5) opposite to the back side (4) and having a front side center (13) determined by its geometric center, a back side base region (6) of a first conductivity type, an inner region (7) of a second conductivity type complementary to the first conductivity type, and a front side base region (8) of the first conductivity type are arranged in sequence, wherein the back side base region (6) is conductively connected to a back side electrode (11) applied to the back side (4), and the back side electrode has a lateral back side electrode width (W) given by its lateral extension range. ER ), and the front base region (8) is electrically conductively connected to a front electrode (10) applied to the front side (5), the front electrode having a lateral front electrode width (W) given by its lateral extension EV ), wherein at least one front side contact structure (17, 23, 30, 35, 41, 50, 53, 63) is embedded in the front base region (8) and at least partially covered by the front electrode (10), the front side contact structure having a lateral front side contact structure width (W) given by its lateral extension SV ), and / or at least one back side contact structure (31, 36, 46, 57) is embedded in the back side base region (6) and at least partially covered by the back side electrode (11), the back side contact structure having a lateral back side contact structure width (W ) given by its lateral extension. SR ), wherein, in the presence of the front contact structure (17, 23, 30, 35, 41, 50, 53, 63), the lateral front contact structure width (W SV ) and the lateral front electrode width (W EV ) is defined as less than 1, and in the presence of the back contact structure (31, 36, 46, 57), the lateral back contact structure width (W SR ) and the lateral back electrode width (W ER ) is defined as less than 1, so that in the non-short-circuited operating state, the voltage applied between the front electrode (10) and the back electrode (11) is blocked in both polarities in a long-term and stable manner and in the short-circuited operating mode a predeterminable switch-on signal is input once to the semiconductor body (16, 25, 32, 39, 43, 48, 51, 55, 58, 61, 69, 74), the predeterminable switch-on signal switches on the correspondingly arranged and arranged switch-on structure (17, 23, 30, 31, 35, 36, 41, 46, 50, 53, 57, 63), whereby a permanent, irreversible, electrically conductive, low-resistance connection is established between the front electrode (10) and the back electrode (11) due to the current flow in the form of a melt layer caused by the voltage applied between the front electrode (10) and the back electrode (11), wherein the contact structure is an emitter structure (17, 23, 30, 35, 36, 41, 46, 53, 63) of a second conductivity type, the emitter structure being embedded in the front base region (8) or the back base region (6) and being in conductive contact with an electrode (10, 11) applied to the respective base region (6, 8), the emitter structure being switchable by means of at least one trigger structure (20, 26, 37, 38, 42, 47, 54, 60) acting electrically on the emitter structure via the semiconductor body (16, 25, 32, 39, 43, 48, 51, 55, 58, 61, 69, 74), wherein the trigger structure (20, 26, 37, 38, 42, 47, 54, 60) can in turn be activated by means of the contact signal, It is characterized in that The surface resistance of the base region (6, 8) containing the emitter structure (17, 23, 30, 35, 36, 41, 46, 53, 63) is set in such a way that a minimum turn-on current for turning on the emitter structure (17, 23, 30, 35, 36, 41, 46, 53, 63) coming from the turn-on signal and input to the emitter structure (17, 23, 30, 35, 36, 41, 46, 53, 63) has a current strength of at least 1A.

27. The method according to claim 26, It is characterized in that The current intensity is at least 2A.

28. The method according to claim 26, It is characterized in that The current intensity is between 5A and 10A.

29. The method according to claim 26, It is characterized in that The trigger structure is a gate electrode (20, 26, 37, 38), and an electrical signal input to the gate electrode (20, 26, 37, 38) for switching on the emitter structure (17, 23, 30, 35, 36, 41, 46, 53, 63) is used as a switching signal, and the electrical signal has a current strength of at least 1A.

30. The method according to claim 29, It is characterized in that The electrical signal has a current strength of at least 2A.

31. The method according to claim 29, It is characterized in that The electrical signal has a current strength between 5A and 10A.

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