Patent · US Expired

Semiconductor device for reducing leak currents and controlling a threshold voltage and using a thin channel structure

US6576943B1 · kind B1 · utility

67Cited by
4References
28Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateFeb 25, 2000
Grant dateJun 10, 2003
Priority date
Expiry dateFeb 25, 2020

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
  • CPC primaryH10D30/674
  • WIPO fieldComputer technology
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

A very thin semiconductor film is used for channels of semiconductor memory elements such that leak currents are reduced by the quantum-mechanical containment effect in the direction of film thickness. The amount of electrical charge accumulated in each charge accumulating region is used to change the conductance between a source region and a drain region of each read transistor structure. This conductance change is utilized for data storage. The thickness of the channel of the write transistor structure is preferably no more than 5 nm. According to one embodiment, the channel of the write transistor is formed by a semiconductor film deposited on a surface intersecting a principal plane of the substrate.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.