Patent ID: 7629631

Claim:
A lateral field-effect device formed in a semiconductor chip comprising: a first portion of a source region of a first conductivity type in the semiconductor chip adjacent a first surface of the chip, the first portion of the source region being in electrical contact with a source contact; a drain region of the first conductivity type adjacent the first surface of the chip; a gate overlying the first surface of the semiconductor chip and separated from the first surface of the semiconductor chip by a gate dielectric layer; a channel region of a second conductivity type opposite to the first conductivity type in the semiconductor chip, the channel region underlying the gate dielectric layer; a drift region of the first conductivity type in the semiconductor chip, the drift region adjoining the drain region and being located between the drain region and the channel region; and a plurality of JFET regions, each of said JFET regions being formed in a trench extending downward from the first surface of the semiconductor chip, each trench being bounded by lateral walls and a floor, the lateral walls of each trench being lined with a dielectric layer, each trench containing a second portion of the source region electrically contacted by the source contact, along with a single-crystal semiconductor material of the first conductivity type, the trenches being laterally spaced apart from each other such that portions of the drift region lie between the trenches.