Integrated circuit including ESD device and radiation emitting device

1. An integrated circuit, comprising:

an ESD device in a semiconductor substrate;

a device in the semiconductor substrate that emits radiation upon electrostatic discharge current beginning to flow through a pin electrically coupled to the ESD device, the ESD device having a pn-junction connected in parallel with the device in the semiconductor substrate that emits radiation upon electrostatic discharge current beginning to flow through a pin electrically coupled to the ESD device, wherein upon occurrence of the electrostatic discharge the ESD device receives the emitted radiation to accelerate avalanche breakdown in the ESD device; and wherein

the ESD device is configured to protect a circuit block different from the ESD device from damage that would otherwise be caused by electrostatic discharge.

2. The integrated circuit of claim 1 , wherein a series connection of the device in the semiconductor substrate that emits radiation upon electrostatic discharge current beginning to flow through a pin electrically coupled to the ESD device and at least one further circuit element is connected in parallel to the ESD device.

3. The integrated circuit of claim 2 , wherein the at least one further circuit element includes a Zener diode.

4. The integrated circuit of claim 1 , wherein at least one semiconductor zone is an integral part of both the ESD device and the device in the semiconductor substrate that emits radiation upon electrostatic discharge current beginning to flow through a pin electrically coupled to the ESD device, the at least one semiconductor zone being electrically connected at a surface side thereof.

5. The integrated circuit of claim 4 , wherein the at least one semiconductor zone is an outermost semiconductor well of a semiconductor region.

6. The integrated circuit of claim 4 , wherein the at least one semiconductor zone is embedded in a further semiconductor zone of a semiconductor region.

7. The integrated circuit of claim 1 , wherein the device in the semiconductor substrate that emits radiation upon electrostatic discharge current beginning to flow through a pin electrically coupled to the ESD device is a Zener diode, an anode of the Zener diode and an anode of the pn-junction of the ESD device being electrically coupled to a same circuit pin.

8. The integrated circuit of claim 1 , wherein the device in the semiconductor substrate that emits radiation upon electrostatic discharge current beginning to flow through a pin electrically coupled to the ESD device is a diode, a cathode of the diode and an anode of the pn-junction of the ESD device being electrically coupled to a same circuit pin.

9. The integrated circuit of claim 1 , wherein the device in the semiconductor substrate that emits radiation upon electrostatic discharge current beginning to flow through a pin electrically coupled to the ESD device is electrically coupled to a power supply pin.

10. The integrated circuit of claim 1 , wherein the device in the semiconductor substrate that emits radiation upon electrostatic discharge current beginning to flow through a pin electrically coupled to the ESD device and the ESD device are formed within a semiconductor region electrically isolated from adjacent semiconductor regions by an isolating region.

11. The integrated circuit of claim 10 , wherein the isolating region is a pn-junction isolation.

12. The integrated circuit of claim 1 , wherein the device in the semiconductor substrate that emits radiation upon electrostatic discharge current beginning to flow through a pin electrically coupled to the ESD device is formed in a first semiconductor region, the ESD device is formed in a second semiconductor region, and the first semiconductor region is electrically isolated from the second semiconductor region by an intermediate isolating region.

13. The integrated circuit of claim 12 , wherein the intermediate isolating region is a pn-junction isolation.

14. An integrated circuit, comprising:

an ESD device formed in a semiconductor region of a semiconductor substrate, the ESD device having a pn-junction; and

a device configured to emit radiation arranged above the ESD device, the pn-junction of the ESD device connected in parallel with the device configured to emit radiation, the ESD device and the device configured to emit radiation being optically coupled via a surface area of the semiconductor substrate, and wherein the device configured to emit radiation emits radiation upon electrostatic discharge current beginning to flow through a pin electrically coupled to the ESD device, and upon occurrence of electrostatic discharge the ESD device receives the emitted radiation to accelerate avalanche breakdown in the ESD device.

15. The integrated circuit of claim 14 , wherein the device configured to emit radiation is formed within a wiring area above the semiconductor substrate.

16. The integrated circuit of claim 15 , wherein the device configured to emit radiation is formed of polysilicon.

17. The integrated circuit of claim 14 , wherein the device configured to emit radiation is formed within a semiconductor substrate other than the semiconductor substrate including the ESD device.

18. The integrated circuit of claim 14 , wherein a series connection of the device configured to emit radiation and at least one further circuit element is connected in parallel to the ESD device.

19. The integrated circuit of claim 18 , wherein the at least one further circuit element includes a Zener diode.

20. The integrated circuit of claim 14 , wherein the device configured to emit radiation is a Zener diode, an anode of the Zener diode and an anode of the pn-junction of the ESD device being electrically coupled to a same circuit pin.

21. The integrated circuit of claim 14 , wherein the device configured to emit radiation is a diode, a cathode of the diode and an anode of the pn-junction of the ESD device being electrically coupled to a same circuit pin.