Semiconductor Device Misaligned Well Regions
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing semiconductor devices face challenges in increasing channel width density while maintaining reliability, as high electric fields can damage the gate insulating film and parasitic resistance increases conduction and switching losses.
Innovation Solution
A semiconductor device with quadrangle-shaped well regions misaligned in both the x-axis and y-axis directions, reducing the distance to the gate insulating film and minimizing parasitic resistance, thereby enhancing reliability and channel width density.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If well regions are arranged in a grid pattern with orthogonal straight lines, then channel width density is increased, but high electric field is applied to the gate insulating film at mesh intersections causing damage
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies asymmetry by misaligning well regions in a staggered configuration rather than using a symmetric grid pattern. Specifically, even-numbered well regions are shifted by a first offset amount in the channel width direction, while odd-numbered well regions are shifted by a second offset amount in the opposite direction. This asymmetric arrangement eliminates the mesh intersection points where high electric fields concentrate, thereby protecting the gate insulating film while maintaining high channel width density.
2Productivity
If cell pitch is reduced to increase channel width density, then channel width density increases, but processing precision becomes more difficult to maintain
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the arrangement parameters of well regions by introducing offset amounts (first offset amount and second offset amount) that are optimized within specific ranges. This parameter optimization allows achieving high channel width density without requiring excessive reduction of cell pitch, thereby maintaining feasible processing precision. The offset amounts are designed to balance channel width density improvement with manufacturing capability.
3Productivity
If cells are continuously formed on diagonal lines to increase channel width density, then channel width density increases, but parasitic resistance increases causing higher conduction and switching losses
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by creating different local configurations for even-numbered and odd-numbered well regions. Even-numbered regions have one offset configuration while odd-numbered regions have the opposite offset configuration. This local differentiation optimizes the channel connection paths, ensuring that channels maintain short distances to source electrode contact regions, thereby minimizing parasitic resistance and reducing conduction and switching losses while achieving high channel width density.
Data Source
AI summary
A semiconductor device that can improve reliability while suppressing increase of a conduction loss or a switching loss. In the semiconductor device, when a two-dimensional shape on a main surface of the semiconductor substrate is an unit cell, the shape being a repeating unit of a plurality of well regions periodically disposed in a surface layer of a drift layer, one unit cell and another unit cell adjacent in an x-axis direction are disposed misaligned in a y-axis direction, and one unit cell and another unit cell adjacent in the y-axis direction are disposed misaligned in the x-axis direction.