Patent Abstract:
A The semiconductor device has a heavily doped substrate and an upper layer with doped silicon of a first conductivity type disposed on the substrate, the upper layer having an upper surface and including an active region that comprises a well region of a second, opposite conductivity type. An edge termination zone has a junction termination extension (JTE) region of the second conductivity type, the region having portions extending away from the well region and a number of field limiting rings of the second conductivity type disposed at the upper surface in the junction termination extension region.

Full Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The invention relates to silicon power semiconductor devices and, more particularly, to a device having improved edge termination. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Protection of device edges is an essential aspect of the design of high voltage semiconductor devices such as MOSFETs, IGBTs, MCTs, bipolar transistors, thyristors, and diodes. The edge protection, or edge termination structure, must perform the function of distributing the applied voltage over a wider region on the surface of the device than it occupies within the silicon substrate, hereby ensuring that the electric field at the surface is low enough to prevent arcing outside the silicon substrate or avalanche breakdown within the substrate near its surface. 
     Various edge termination techniques have been developed, including, for example, field plate (FP), described in F. Conti and M. Conti, “Surface breakdown in silicon planar diodes equipped with field plate,” Solid State Electronics, Vol. 15, pp 93-105, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. Another edge termination approach is field limiting rings (FLR), described in Kao and Wolley, “High voltage planar p-n junctions,” Proc. IEEE, 1965, Vol. 55, pp 1409-1414, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. Further edge termination structures utilized junction termination extension (JTE), described in V. A. K. Temple, “Junction termination extension, a new technique for increasing avalanche breakdown voltage and controlling surface electric field in p-n junction,” IEEE International Electron Devices Meeting Digest, 1977 Abstract 20.4, pp 423-426 and variable lateral doping concentration (VLD), described in R. Stengl et al., “Variation of lateral doping as a field terminator for high-voltage power devices”, IEEE Trans. Electron Devices, 1986, Vol. ED-33, No. 3, pp 426-428, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. 
     Typically, a planar diffusion technique is used to produce a P-N junction diode, which yields a cylindrical junction. Because of the curvature at the edge of the junction it produces a greater electric field than an ideal planar junction. As a result, the breakdown voltage of a cylindrical junction diode is substantially lower than that of an ideal planar junction diode. Edge termination techniques are used to reduce the concentration of the electric field in a cylindrical junction diode. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 6,215,168 B1 to Brush et al., the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference, describes a semiconductor die that comprises a heavily doped silicon substrate and an upper layer comprising doped silicon of a first conductivity type disposed in the substrate. The upper layer includes an active region that comprises a well region of a second, opposite conductivity type and an edge termination zone comprising a junction termination extension (JTE) region that includes portions extending away from and extending beneath the well region. The JTE region is of varying dopant density, the dopant density being maximum at the point beneath the junction at the upper surface of the upper layer of the JTE region with the well region. The dopant density of the JTE region decreases in both lateral directions from its maximum point. 
     Finding an improved way to reduce the electric field at the junction of the active area and the JTE region of a power semiconductor device, the JTE region having a laterally constant or varying (VLD) dopant density, and thereby increasing its breakdown voltage remains a highly desirable goal. 
     SUMMARY 
     One embodiment is directed to a semiconductor device comprising a doped semiconductor substrate and an upper layer comprising doped semiconductor material of a first conductivity type disposed on the substrate. The upper layer comprises an upper surface and includes an active region with a well region of a second, opposite conductivity type and an edge termination zone that comprises a junction termination extension (JTE) region of the second conductivity type. The JTE region comprises portions extending away from the well region. A number of field limiting rings of the second conductivity type are disposed at the upper surface in the junction termination extension region. 
     Another embodiment is directed to a semiconductor device comprising a doped semiconductor substrate and an upper layer of semiconductor material of a first conductivity type disposed on said semiconductor substrate, said upper layer having an upper surface and including an active region that comprises a well region of a second, opposite conductivity type and an edge termination zone that comprises a first junction termination extension (JTE) region of the second conductivity type, said region comprising portions extending away from said well region, and a second junction termination extension (JTE) region of the second conductivity type extending away from said well region disposed in the first junction termination extension region. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1A  shows a cross-sectional view of a semiconductor die including a JTE region as an edge termination structure according to a first embodiment of the invention, 
         FIG. 1B  shows a cross-sectional view of a semiconductor die including a JTE region as an edge termination structure according to a second embodiment of the invention, 
         FIG. 2  shows a graph of the current-voltage-characteristic under reverse bias of a power semiconductor device with the die of  FIG. 1 , and 
         FIG. 3  shows a detail of the graph of  FIG. 2 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       FIG. 1A  schematically depicts a semiconductor die  100  according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The semiconductor die  100  comprises an N-doped upper layer  101  which includes an active region well  102 , which can be e.g. a p-emitter of a diode or a p-body of an IGBT, and a JTE region  103 , which are both p-doped. The upper layer  101  further comprises a number of p-doped field limiting rings  109 ,  110  and  111  in the JTE region  103 . A metal contact  104  and a dielectric layer  105  overlie, respectively, the active region  102  and the JTE region  103  with the field limiting rings  109 . The JTE-region  103  extends deeper into the upper layer in the direction perpendicular to the upper surface than the field limiting rings  109 . 
     It is recognized that the conductivity types of the dopants in layer  101 , well  102 , JTE region  103 , and field limiting rings  109 ,  110  and  111 , N, P, P, and P, respectively, can also be of the opposite conductivity types, i.e., P, N, N and N, respectively. 
     The active region  102  and the field limiting rings  109  are preferably heavily doped with a dopant concentration of the order of 10 18  cm −3  or above, while the JTE region  103  is typically doped with a concentration of the order of 10 15  cm −3 . In one embodiment of the invention, the field limiting rings  109 ,  110  and  111  comprise substantially the same dopant density. In another embodiment of the invention, the dopant density of the field limiting rings increases from a maximum value of the innermost field limiting ring  109  closest to the well region  102  to a minimum value of the furthermost field limiting ring  111 . The field limiting rings preferably comprise substantially the same width. 
     From a point of maximum dopant density  107 , that lies substantially directly beneath the junction of JTE region  103  with active region  102  at the upper surface of upper layer  101 , the dopant density of the JTE region  103  preferably decreases in both lateral directions, forming a variation of lateral doping (VLD) region. The VLD edge termination is therefore a special case of a JTE structure. 
     The JTE region  103  and the field limiting rings  109 ,  110  and  111  of die  100  are preferably formed by implanting varying amounts of dopant according to known procedures described in, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,927,772, 4,667,393, and 4,648,174. The JTE region  103  and the field limiting rings can also comprise epitaxial layers, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,712,502. 
     In the case of an avalanche breakdown, the concentration of p-holes compensates the charge of the ionized dopants in the JTE region, thereby reducing the maximum electrical field strength in the area of the junction termination. If the p-hole concentration in the case of an avalanche breakdown exceeds the dopant concentration of the JTE region  103 , this mechanism no longer works and the breakdown may jump to the edge of the active region  102 . 
     The field limiting rings however have a dopant concentration that exceeds the concentration of p-holes in the case of a breakdown. They can therefore built up a space-charge region that partly compensates the influence of the curved junction on the electric field and therefore increases the breakdown voltage of the semiconductor device even in the case of high leakage current densities. 
       FIG. 1B  schematically depicts a semiconductor die  100  according to a second embodiment of the present invention. The semiconductor die  100  comprises an N-doped upper layer  101  which includes an active region well  102 , which can be e.g. a p-emitter of a diode or a p-body of an IGBT, and a first JTE region  103 , which are both p-doped. The upper layer  101  further comprises a second JTE region  112  in the first JTE region  103 . A metal contact  104  and a dielectric layer  105  overlie, respectively, the active region  102  and the first and second JTE region  103  and  112 . 
     It is recognized that the conductivity types of the dopants in layer  101 , well  102 , first JTE region  103 , and second JTE region  112 , N, P, P, and P, respectively, can also be of the opposite conductivity types, i.e., P, N, N and N, respectively. 
     The lateral extension of the second JTE region on the upper surface is 20 to 200 μm, depending on the desired voltage class of the device. 
     The first JTE region  103  is typically doped with a dose of the order 10 12  cm −2  to 5·10 12  cm −2 , while the second JTE region is doped with a dose of the order of 10 13  cm −2  to 10 15  cm −2 . The first JTE region  103  and the second JTE region  112  can be of constant or varying lateral dopant density. 
       FIG. 2  depicts a computer simulation of the current-voltage-characteristic under reverse bias of a power semiconductor device with field limiting rings  109  in addition to a JTE region  103 . The characteristic shows a sharp voltage drop at the point  201  of an avalanche breakdown. 
       FIG. 3  shows a detail of  FIG. 2 , which illustrates the influence of the number of field limiting rings  109  in the JTE region  103  on the current-voltage-characteristic. The first characteristic  302  is the characteristic of a die  100  which comprises a JTE region  103  but no field limiting rings  109 . The second, third and fourth characteristic  303 ,  304 , and  305  respectively, are the characteristics of a die  100  with a JTE junction and additional three, four or five field limiting rings  109 , respectively. 
     The point  201  indicating a breakdown jumping of the position of the edge of the JTE to the edge of the active region is shifted to higher currents and higher voltages by employing the field limiting rings. The improvement can be achieved with a constant as well as with a varying lateral doping. 
     The die  100  with the edge termination according to the invention is preferably used in an IGBT-, Schottky-diode or a pin-diode semiconductor device. 
     While the invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to preferred embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the foregoing and other changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, which is defined by the following claims. 
     REFERENCE NUMBERS 
     
         
           100  device 
           101  upper layer 
           102  active region 
           103  JTE region 
           104  metal contact 
           105  dielectric layer 
           107  point of maximum dopant density 
           109  field limiting ring 
           110  innermost field limiting ring 
           111  furthermost field limiting ring 
           112  second JTE region 
           201  point of avalanche breakdown 
           302  first characteristic 
           303  second characteristic 
           304  third characteristic 
           305  fourth characteristic

Technology Classification (CPC): 7