IP Library Granted Patent US 11,652,166
Granted Patent B2
US 11,652,166 · App. 16/871,268 · Granted May 16, 2023

Power device having super junction and Schottky diode

Inventors: Wonhwa Lee (Bucheon-si, KR); Gary H. Loechelt (Tempe, AZ)
Assignee: SEMICONDUCTOR COMPONENTS INDUSTRIES, LLC
H01L29/7806H01L21/26513H01L21/30604H01L21/31111H01L29/0634H01L29/1095H01L29/47H01L29/66143H01L29/66333H01L29/66712H01L29/7395H01L29/7811H01L29/872H01L21/266H01L29/36
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 11,652,166
App. No.
16/871,268
Granted
May 16, 2023
Kind
B2
Abstract

A method of forming a power semiconductor device includes providing an epi layer over a substrate; forming a well at an upper portion of the epi layer; forming a pillar below the well and spaced apart from the well to define a Schottky contact region; etching a trench into the epi layer, the trench having a sidewall and a base, a portion of the sidewall of the trench corresponding to the Schottky contact region; forming a metal contact layer over the sidewall and the base of the trench, the metal contact layer forming a Schottky interface with the epi layer at the Schottky contact region; and forming a gate electrode and first and second electrodes.

Claims (51)

1. A method of forming a power semiconductor device, the method comprising:

forming an epi layer over a substrate;

forming a well at an upper portion of the epi layer;

forming a pillar below the well and spaced apart from the well to define a Schottky contact region;

etching a trench into the epi layer, the trench having a sidewall and a base, a portion of the sidewall of the trench corresponding to the Schottky contact region;

forming a metal contact layer over the sidewall and the base of the trench, the metal contact layer forming a Schottky interface with the epi layer at the Schottky contact region; and

forming a gate electrode and first and second electrodes.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

forming an insulating layer over the trench, the insulating layer covering the sidewall and the base of the trench;

etching the insulating layer to remove a first portion of the insulating layer overlying the base of the trench while leaving a second portion of the insulating layer covering the sidewall of the trench, thereby exposing a portion of the pillar; and

implanting ions into the exposed portion of the pillar to form an Ohmic contact region,

wherein the metal contact layer makes an Ohmic contact with the Ohmic contact region, and the second portion of the insulating layer remaining on the sidewall of the trench serves to protect the sidewall of the trench from scattering ions during the implanting.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the power semiconductor device is a MOSEFT and the pillar is a super junction pillar.

4. The method of claim 2 , wherein the ions are implanted with an energy level that is not sufficient to penetrate the second portion of the insulating layer remaining on the sidewall of the trench.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the energy level is in a range from 3 keV to 25 keV.

6. The method of claim 2 , wherein the Ohmic contact region has the same conductivity type as that of the pillar and a doping concentration of the Ohmic contact region is greater than that of the pillar.

7. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

forming an enhancement region between the well and the pillar, and adjacent to the sidewall of the trench.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein a doping concentration in the enhancement region is from 1.2×10 16 cm −3 to 5×10 17 cm −3 .

9. The method of claim 7 , wherein the pillar is a first pillar and the enhancement region is a first enhancement region, the first pillar extending in a first direction when seen in a top view, the method further comprising:

forming a second enhancement region over a second pillar neighboring the first pillar in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the first enhancement region and the second enhancement region do not overlap each other with respect to the first direction.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein a gap that defines the Schottky contact region is in a range from 1 μm to 5 μm.

12. The method of claim 1 , wherein the trench is etched to extend into the pillar by a given distance, the given distance being in a range from 1 μm to 8 μm.

13. The method of claim 1 , wherein the pillar has a vertical dimension of at least 20 μm.

14. A method of forming a power semiconductor device, the method comprising:

forming a first layer that has a pillar over a substrate;

forming a second layer over the first layer;

forming a well in the second layer;

forming a trench over the pillar, the trench having a sidewall and a base, a portion of the sidewall of the trench corresponding to a gap that defines a distance between the well and the pillar;

forming a metal contact layer over the sidewall and the base of the trench, the metal contact layer forming a Schottky interface at the portion of the sidewall of the trench; and

forming first and second electrodes over the metal contact layer.

15. The method of claim 14 , further comprising:

forming an insulating layer over the trench, the insulating layer covering the sidewall and the base of the trench;

etching the insulating layer to remove a first portion of the insulating layer overlying the base of the trench while leaving a second portion of the insulating layer covering the sidewall of the trench, thereby exposing a portion of the pillar; and

implanting ions into the exposed portion of the pillar to form an Ohmic contact region,

wherein the metal contact layer makes an Ohmic contact with the Ohmic contact region, and the second portion of the insulating layer remaining on the sidewall of the trench serves to protect the sidewall of the trench from scattering ions during the implanting.

16. The method of claim 14 , further comprising:

forming a third layer over the first layer; and

forming an enhancement region in the third layer.

17. The method of claim 16 , wherein the third layer has a sufficient depth to form the gap between the well and the pillar.

18. The method of claim 14 , further comprising forming a gate electrode over the second layer,

wherein the well is formed in the second layer using the gate electrode as a mask.

19. The method of claim 14 , wherein the gap that defines the distance between the well and the pillar is in a range from 1 μm to 5 μm.

20. The method of claim 14 , wherein the trench is formed to extend into the pillar by a given distance, the given distance being in a range from 1 μm to 8 μm.

21. A method of forming a power semiconductor device, the method comprising:

forming a well at an upper portion of an epi layer formed over a substrate;

forming a pillar below the well and spaced apart from the well to define a Schottky contact region;

etching a trench into the epi layer, the trench having a sidewall and a base, a portion of the sidewall of the trench corresponding to the Schottky contact region;

forming a metal contact layer over the sidewall and the base of the trench, the metal contact layer forming a Schottky interface with the epi layer at the Schottky contact region; and

forming a gate electrode and first and second electrodes.

Assignments (3)
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST IN PATENTS PREVIOUSLY RECORDED AT REEL 053613, FRAME 0621 Recorded Aug 17, 2023
From: DEUTSCHE BANK AG NEW YORK BRANCH, AS COLLATERAL AGENT
To: SEMICONDUCTOR COMPONENTS INDUSTRIES, LLC; FAIRCHILD SEMICONDUCTOR CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 064618/0942 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Aug 27, 2020
From: FAIRCHILD SEMICONDUCTOR CORPORATION; SEMICONDUCTOR COMPONENTS INDUSTRIES, LLC
To: DEUTSCHE BANK AG NEW YORK BRANCH, AS COLLATERAL AGENT
Reel/Frame 053613/0621 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded May 11, 2020
From: LEE, WONHWA; LOECHELT, GARY H.
To: SEMICONDUCTOR COMPONENTS INDUSTRIES, LLC
Reel/Frame 052622/0926 →
Continuity (2)
Division 16009484 · Jun 15, 2018
Related Publication 20200273981A1 · Aug 27, 2020