Overlapping Contact Web Structures for Uniform Current Distribution
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional radiation-emitting semiconductor chips face limitations in achieving high efficiency due to inhomogeneous current distribution, particularly in geometries with large length-to-width ratios, which restricts their application in backlighting and LED filaments.
Innovation Solution
A radiation-emitting semiconductor chip design featuring a semiconductor body with overlapping contact web structures and an insulation layer with openings, allowing for uniform current distribution and reduced absorption losses, enabling efficient operation across various geometries.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional metallic contact structures or transparent conductive layers are used, then electrical contacting is achieved, but current distribution becomes inhomogeneous in lateral direction
Solution Approach 1:
The contact layers are segmented into contact webs that extend from contact surfaces into the active region. These segmented contact webs are arranged to overlap in plan view, creating multiple current injection paths that distribute current more uniformly across the lateral direction compared to conventional continuous contact structures.
Solution Approach 2:
The contact web structures extend from the two-dimensional contact surfaces into the third dimension (depth) of the active region. This vertical extension allows current to be injected at multiple depths, creating overlapping current paths that improve lateral current distribution uniformity.
2Adaptability or versatility
If semiconductor chips with large length-to-width ratio are used for side radiation applications, then geometric suitability is improved, but current distribution uniformity deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The contact layers are divided into multiple contact webs that can be strategically positioned and sized. In chips with large length-to-width ratios, these segmented contact webs create distributed current injection points along the length, maintaining uniform current distribution even when the chip geometry is highly anisotropic.
Solution Approach 2:
The contact web structures have varying local properties - their width, spacing, and depth of extension can be tailored to specific regions of the chip. This allows optimization of current distribution for particular geometries, such as providing denser contact web spacing in regions where uniformity is more challenging to achieve.
3Reliability
If contact web structures are extended into the active region to improve current distribution, then current uniformity is improved, but radiation absorption losses increase
Solution Approach 1:
The contact webs extend partially into the active region rather than covering the entire depth. This partial extension is sufficient to achieve the desired current distribution uniformity while minimizing the volume of metal that could absorb generated radiation, thus reducing energy losses.
Solution Approach 2:
The contact web structures have spatially varying properties - they may be wider or deeper in regions where current distribution benefits are needed, and narrower or shallower in regions where radiation extraction is prioritized. This local optimization balances current uniformity with reduced radiation absorption.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The design achieves homogeneous current density distribution and increased efficiency, allowing for scalable geometries and reduced radiation absorption losses, enhancing brightness and operational efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
the insulation layer is formed as a filter layer that predominantly transmits incident radiation within a first angular range and predominantly reflects incident radiation within a second angular range
Implementation Method 2
the insulation layer is formed as a filter layer that predominantly transmits incident radiation within a first angular range
Data Source
AI summary
A radiation-emitting semiconductor chip includes a semiconductor body; a first contact layer having a first contact surface for external electrical contacting of the semiconductor chip and a first contact web structure connected to the first contact surface, wherein the first contact web structure is a region of the first contact layer that, compared to the first contact surface, has a comparatively small extent at least in a lateral direction; a second contact layer, wherein first and second contact web structures overlap in places in plan view of the semiconductor chip; a current distribution layer; and an insulation layer having a plurality of openings into which the current distribution layer extends.