Patent ID: 8125029

Claim:
A semiconductor diode comprising: a drift region of a first conductivity type; an anode region of a second conductivity type in the drift region, the anode region and the drift region forming a pn junction therebetween; a first highly doped silicon region of the first conductivity type in the drift region, the first highly doped silicon region being laterally spaced from the anode region such that upon biasing the semiconductor diode in a conducting state, a current flows laterally between the anode region and the first highly doped silicon region through the drift region; and a plurality of trenches extending into the drift region perpendicular to the current flow, each trench having a dielectric layer lining at least a portion of the trench sidewalls and at least one conductive electrode, wherein each conductive electrode electrically contacts the drift region along upper sidewalls of each trench.