Patent ID: 7026669

Claim:
A lateral channel transistor (LCT) formed in a widebandgap semiconductor comprising: one or more layers of the widebandgap semiconductor having a first conductivity type and a first and a second surface; one or more layers of the widebandgap semiconductor having a second conductivity type formed on the first surface of the one or more layers of the first conductivity type, including at least a resurf layer; a gate formed on the second surface of the one or more layers of the first conductivity type; a source region in contact with the resurf layer; a drain region in contact with the resurf layer spaced apart from the source region; a current conduction path in the one or more layers of the second conductivity type between the source region and the drain region; and a pinch-off groove formed in the resurf layer between the source region and the drain region having a width less than the distance between the source region and the drain region to pinch-off the current conduction path.