Semiconductor current-switching device having operational enhancer and method therefor
US6448586B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Sep 21, 2000 |
| Grant date | Sep 10, 2002 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Oct 20, 2020 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH10B12/10
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A novel capacitively coupled NDR device can be used to implement a variety of semiconductor circuits, including high-density SRAM cells and power thyristor structures. In one example embodiment, the NDR device is used as a thin vertical PNPN structure with capacitively-coupled gate-assisted turn-off and turn-on mechanisms. An SRAM based on this new device is comparable in cell area, standby current, architecture, speed, and fabrication process to a DRAM of the same capacity. In one embodiment, an NDR-based SRAM cell consists of only two elements, has an 8F2 footprint, can operate at high speeds and low voltages, has a good noise-margin, and is compatible in fabrication process with main-stream CMOS. This cell significantly reduces standby power consumption compared to other type of NDR-based SRAMs.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.