Henry Schein has filed a patent for a semiconductor device that includes a drift zone, gate trenches, semiconductor mesas, field plate trenches, source and body regions, and a current spreading region. The patent also describes methods of producing the semiconductor device. GlobalData’s report on Henry Schein gives a 360-degree view of the company including its patenting strategy. Buy the report here.
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According to GlobalData’s company profile on Henry Schein, drug delivery device authentication was a key innovation area identified from patents. Henry Schein's grant share as of September 2023 was 55%. Grant share is based on the ratio of number of grants to total number of patents.
Semiconductor device with gate trenches and field plate trenches
A recently filed patent (Publication Number: US20230261104A1) describes a new semiconductor device and a method for producing it. The device includes a semiconductor substrate with a drift zone of a first conductivity type. An array of interconnected gate trenches extends from the surface of the substrate into the drift zone, delimiting multiple semiconductor mesas. Needle-shaped field plate trenches also extend from the surface into the mesas. Within the mesas, there is a source region of the first conductivity type and a body region of a second conductivity type, separating the source region from the drift zone. At the bottom of the gate trenches, there is a current spreading region of the first conductivity type with a higher average doping concentration than the drift zone.
The gate trenches in the device have electrodes and a gate dielectric insulating material separating the electrodes from the substrate. The gate dielectric insulating material has an increased thickness at the bottom of the trenches. The current spreading region has a lower average doping concentration below the bottom of the gate trenches and a higher average doping concentration laterally beyond the bottom of the trenches. The current spreading region and the body regions adjoin each other at the sidewalls of the gate trenches, while the drift zone separates the current spreading region and the body regions from each other at the sidewalls of the trenches.
The patent also describes a method for producing the semiconductor device. The method involves forming a drift zone of a first conductivity type in a semiconductor substrate and creating an array of interconnected gate trenches that extend from the surface of the substrate into the drift zone, delimiting semiconductor mesas. Needle-shaped field plate trenches are formed in the mesas. The method also includes forming a source region of the first conductivity type and a body region of a second conductivity type within the mesas, separating the source region from the drift zone. At the bottom of the gate trenches, a current spreading region of the first conductivity type is formed with a higher average doping concentration than the drift zone.
The current spreading region is formed by implanting a dopant species of the first conductivity type through the gate trenches and into the substrate before forming the electrodes. The dopant species is implanted at an angle perpendicular or less than 90° with respect to the surface of the substrate. The method also involves increasing the thickness of an oxide at the bottom of the gate trenches and implanting the dopant species through the trenches after increasing the oxide thickness. Additionally, a first implantation process is performed at a perpendicular angle, followed by a second implantation process at an angle less than 90°, with an increase in oxide thickness between the two processes.
Overall, this patent presents a new semiconductor device and a method for producing it, which could potentially improve the performance and efficiency of semiconductor devices.
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GlobalData Patent Analytics tracks bibliographic data, legal events data, point in time patent ownerships, and backward and forward citations from global patenting offices. Textual analysis and official patent classifications are used to group patents into key thematic areas and link them to specific companies
