Patent ID: 6989298

Claim:
A method of forming thin-film transistor devices with electro-static discharge protection, comprising the steps of: forming a silicon layer on a substrate; forming a plurality of source regions, a plurality of drain regions and a plurality of connectors in the silicon layer, wherein the source regions are connected electrically with the drain regions by the connectors; forming a gate oxide layer on the silicon layer; forming a plurality of gate electrodes on the gate-oxide layer; forming a dielectric interlayer; patterning the dielectric interlayer to form a plurality of contact holes and a plurality of openings, wherein the contact holes expose each of the source regions and each of the drain regions in the silicon layer, and the openings expose each of the connectors in the silicon layer; forming a source/drain metal layer on the dielectric interlayer and in the contact holes and the openings; and patterning the source/drain metal layer to form a plurality of data lines and remove entirely the silicon layer in the openings to cut the connectors.