IP Library › Granted Patent US 12,268,014
Granted Patent B2
US 12,268,014 · App. 17/636,108 · Granted Apr 1, 2025

Resistors for integrated circuits

Inventor: Richard Price (Sedgefield, GB)
Assignee: PRAGMATIC SEMICONDUCTOR LIMITED
H10D1/474H01C1/01H01C1/14H01C7/006H01C17/003H01C17/075H01C17/28H01L21/02565H10D1/47H10D8/60H10D30/6755H10D30/6757H10D62/80H10D84/02H10D84/204H10D84/811H10D86/0221H10D86/423H10D86/481H10D86/60H10D86/80H10D99/00
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,268,014
App. No.
17/636,108
Granted
Apr 1, 2025
Kind
B2
Abstract

A thin-film integrated circuit comprising a first semiconductor device, a second semiconductor device, a first resistor, and a second resistor is provided. A semiconducting region of the first semiconductor device, a resistor body of the first resistor, a semiconducting region of the second semiconductor device, and a resistor body of the second resistor are formed from at least one of a first source material and a second source material, and a material of the resistor body of the first resistor and a material of the resistor body of the second resistor have different electrical properties.

Claims (33)

1. A thin-film integrated circuit, IC, comprising:

a first semiconductor device,

a second semiconductor device,

a first resistor, and

a second resistor,

wherein a semiconducting region of the first semiconductor device, a resistor body of the first resistor, a semiconducting region of the second semiconductor device, and a resistor body of the second resistor are formed from at least one of a first source material and a second source material,

wherein a material of the resistor body of the first resistor and a material of the resistor body of the second resistor have different electrical properties, and

wherein the first semiconductor device is a first thin-film transistor, TFT, or a Schottky diode, and the resistor body of the first resistor and the channel of the first TFT or the semiconducting region of the Schottky diode are formed from a single deposition layer of the first source material.

2. The thin-film IC of claim 1 , wherein the semiconducting region of the first semiconductor device and the resistor body of the first resistor are formed from the first source material, and the semiconducting region of the second semiconductor device and the resistor body of the second resistor are formed from the second source material.

3. The thin-film IC of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the resistor body of the first resistor and the semiconducting region of the first semiconductor device, and the second material that forms the resistor body of the second resistor and the semiconducting region of the second semiconductor device are included in a single deposition layer.

4. The thin-film IC of claim 1 , wherein the second semiconductor device is a second thin-film transistor, TFT, and the resistor body of the second resistor and the channel of the second TFT are formed from the second source material.

5. The thin-film IC of claim 1 , wherein the second semiconductor device is a second Schottky diode and the resistor body of the second resistor and a semiconducting region of the second Schottky diode are formed from the second source material.

6. The thin-film IC of claim 1 , where a material of the semiconducting region of the first semiconductor device and the material of the resistor body of the first resistor have different electrical properties.

7. The thin-film IC of claim 1 , wherein the first source material and the second source material are semiconductors.

8. The thin-film IC of claim 1 , wherein the first source material is an n-type semiconductor and the second source material is a p-type semiconductor.

9. The thin-film IC of claim 1 , wherein the first and second source materials are the same or different.

10. The thin-film IC of claim 9 , wherein the first and second source materials are an intrinsic semiconductor.

11. The thin-film IC of claim 4 , wherein the first TFT is an n-type TFT and the second TFT is a p-type TFT.

12. A method for fabricating a thin-film integrated circuit, IC, the thin-film IC comprising a first semiconductor device, a second semiconductor device, a first resistor, and a second resistor, and the method comprising

depositing at least one of a first source material and a second source material to form a semiconducting region of the first semiconductor device, a resistor body of the first resistor, a semiconducting region of the second semiconductor device, and a resistor body of the second resistor, and

altering the electrical properties of at least one portion of the source material forming the semiconducting region of the first semiconductor device, the resistor body of the first resistor, the semiconducting region of the second semiconductor device, and the resistor body of the second resistor during or after deposition of the respective portion of source material,

wherein the disposed material of the resistor body of the first resistor and the disposed material of the resistor body of the second resistor have different electrical properties, and

wherein the first semiconductor device is a first thin-film transistor, TFT, or a Schottky diode, and the resistor body of the first resistor and the channel of the first TFT or the semiconducting region of the Schottky diode are formed from a single deposition layer of the first source material.

13. The method of claim 12 , wherein the depositing at least one of a first source material and a second source material comprises:

depositing a layer of the first source material to form the semiconducting region of the first semiconductor device and the resistor body of the first resistor, and

depositing a layer of the second source material to form the semiconducting region of the second semiconductor device and the resistor body of the second resistor.

14. The method of claim 12 , wherein altering the electrical properties comprises at least one of controlling the environmental conditions under which the respective portion of the source material is deposited, depositing a further material onto the respective portion of source material, exposing the respective portion of the source material to electromagnetic radiation, and controlling the electrical properties of a surface onto which the respective portion of source material is deposited.

15. The method of claim 12 , wherein altering the electrical properties of a portion of the source material includes one or more of changing the source material of the portion from an n-type semiconductor to a p-type semiconductor, changing the source material of the portion from a p-type semiconductor to an n-type semiconductor, changing the source material of the portion from an intrinsic semiconductor to an n-type or a p-type semiconductor, and changing the source material of the portion from a semiconductor to a conductor.

16. The method of claim 12 , wherein the second semiconductor device is a second thin-film transistor, TFT, and the resistor body of the second resistor and the channel of the second TFT are formed from the second source material.

17. The method of claim 12 , wherein the second semiconductor device is a second Schottky diode and the resistor body of the second resistor and a semiconducting region of the second Schottky diode are formed from the second source material.

18. The method of claim 12 , where the material of the semiconducting region of the first semiconductor device and the material of the resistor body of the first resistor have different electrical properties.

19. The thin-film IC of claim 1 , wherein there is a difference of at least an order of magnitude between the resistivity the material of the resistor body of the first resistor and the resistivity of the material of the resistor body of the second resistor.

20. The thin-film IC of claim 1 , wherein the first and second source materials are metal oxides.

Assignments (2)
CHANGE OF NAME Recorded Oct 14, 2024
From: PRAGMATIC PRINTING LIMITED
To: PRAGMATIC SEMICONDUCTOR LIMITED
Reel/Frame 068888/0492 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Mar 10, 2022
From: PRICE, RICHARD
To: PRAGMATIC PRINTING LTD.
Reel/Frame 059225/0238 →
Priority Claims (3)
GB 1912025 · Aug 21, 2019 · national
GB 1913610 · Sep 20, 2019 · national
GB 1915158 · Oct 18, 2019 · national
Continuity (1)
Related Publication 20220293717A1 · Sep 15, 2022
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