An object is to provide a semiconductor device of which a manufacturing process is not complicated and by which cost can be suppressed, by forming a thin film transistor using an oxide semiconductor film typified by zinc oxide, and a manufacturing method thereof. For the semiconductor device, a gate electrode is formed over a substrate; a gate insulating film is formed covering the gate electrode; an oxide semiconductor film is formed over the gate insulating film; and a first conductive film and a second conductive film are formed over the oxide semiconductor film. The oxide semiconductor film has at least a crystallized region in a channel region.

Semiconductor device, and manufacturing method thereof

A method for fabricating a semiconductor device, in which a lifting phenomenon can be prevented from occurring in forming an amorphous carbon film on an etched layer having tensile stress. According to the invention, since a compression stress on the etched layer or the amorphous carbon film can be reduced or a compression stress film is formed between the etched layer or the amorphous carbon film to prevent a lifting phenomenon from occurring and thus another pattern can be formed to fabricate a highly integrated semiconductor device.

Method for Fabricating Semiconductor Device

An integrated circuit device includes: a RAM block including a plurality of wordlines, a plurality of bitlines, a plurality of memory cells, and a wordline control circuit; and a data line driver block which drives a plurality of data line groups of a display panel based on data supplied from the RAM block. The data line driver block includes first to Nth (N is an integer larger than one) divided data line driver blocks, each of the first to Nth divided data line driver blocks driving a different data line group of the data line groups. The wordline control circuit drives an identical wordline N times from among the wordlines in one horizontal scan period of the display panel. The first to Nth divided data line drivers are disposed along a first direction in which the bitlines extend.

Integrated circuit device and electronic instrument

A semiconductor integrated circuit has a central processing unit and a rewritable nonvolatile memory area disposed in an address space of the central processing unit. The nonvolatile memory area has a first nonvolatile memory area and a second nonvolatile memory area, which memorize information depending on the difference of threshold voltages. The first nonvolatile memory area has the maximum variation width of a threshold voltage for memorizing information set larger than that of the second nonvolatile memory area. When the maximum variation width of the threshold voltage for memorizing information is larger, since stress to a memory cell owing to a rewrite operation of memory information becomes larger, it is inferior in a point of guaranteeing the number of times of rewrite operation; however, since a read current becomes larger, a read speed of memory information can be expedited. The first nonvolatile memory area can be prioritized to expedite a read speed of the memory information and the second nonvolatile memory area can be prioritized in guaranteeing the number of times of rewrite operation of memory information more.

Semiconductor Integrated circuit

Integrated circuit antifuse circuitry is provided. A metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) transistor serves as an electrically-programmable antifuse. The antifuse transistor has source, drain, gate, and substrate terminals. The gate has an associated gate oxide. In its unprogrammed state, the gate oxide is intact and the antifuse has a relatively high resistance. During programming, the gate oxide breaks down, so in its programmed state the antifuse transistor has a relatively low resistance. The antifuse transistor can be programmed by injecting hot carriers into the substrate of the device in the vicinity of the drain. Because there are more hot carriers at the drain than at the substrate, the gate oxide is stressed asymmetrically, which enhances programming efficiency. Feedback can be used to assist in turning the antifuse transistor on to inject the hot carriers.

Electrically-programmable transistor antifuses

ESD protection devices and methods to form them are provided in this invention. By employing the thin gate oxide fabricated by a dual gate oxide process, ESD protection devices with a lower trigger voltage are provided. The NMOS for ESD protection according to the present invention has islands with thin gate oxides and a control gate with a thick gate oxide. These islands overlap the drain region of the NMOS to reduce the breakdown voltage of the PN junction in the drain region, thereby reducing the ESD trigger voltage and improving the ESD protection level of the NMOS. Furthermore, the invention is applicable to general integrated-circuit processes as well as various ESD protection devices.

ESD protection devices and methods for reducing trigger voltage

A gate-coupled MOSFET ESD protection circuit. The circuit has a gate-node potential controlled by an inverter and a timing control circuit. Unlike current-shunting ESD clamping devices that turn the MOSFET fully on during an ESD event, a pull-down element is included to form a voltage divider like circuit, such that the gate-node potential is limited to around 1 to 2 volts during a positive ESD transient event. Unlike GCNMOS (Gate-Coupled NMOS), the invention has better control of the transient gate potential for more effective triggering of the NMOS into snapback during an ESD event.

Gate-coupled MOSFET ESD protection circuit

An early triggered MOSFET ESD protection circuit based on reduction of the trigger voltage is described. A transient negative voltage is generated and applied to a gate of a MOSFET during a positive ESD event. The instant invention improves ESD performance, and is particularly useful for thin gate oxide of 40 Å and less.

Early triggered ESD MOSFET protection circuit and method thereof

The output buffer of the present invention comprises a pull up circuit and a pull down circuit. The pull up circuit is coupled between a first power line and a pad. The pull down circuit coupled between a second power line and the pad is comprised of a resistor, a diode and an electrostatic discharge protection component. The resistor deposited on the substrate of a first conductivity type is comprised of a well region of a second conductivity type and has a first end and a second end. The first end is a forth doped region of the second conductivity type and coupled to the pad. The diode is formed in the well region, construct by the PN junction formed between a first doped region of the first conductivity type and the well region. The electrostatic discharge component is coupled between the second end and the second power line. The first doped region is electrically floated in the well regions. Because the first doped region and the first end are not connected directly, there is no latch-up issue occurring in normal circuit operations. During an electrostatic discharge event, the first end is instantaneously connected to the first doped region which will help to boost the turn-on of the electrostatic discharge circuit, and further enhance the electrostatic protection effect.

Output buffer with good ESD Protection

A method of operating a non-volatile memory device includes providing the non-volatile memory device with a body of first conductivity, a source region of second conductivity, a drain region of second conductivity on the body, and a control gate over the body adjacent to the source and drain regions. A first voltage of first polarity is applied to the control gate. A second voltage of first polarity is applied to the drain region, the second voltage being less than about 5.6 volts. A third voltage of second polarity is applied to the source region.

Wei-Fan Chen

Papers

ESD protection devices and methods for reducing trigger voltage

Gate-coupled MOSFET ESD protection circuit

Early triggered ESD MOSFET protection circuit and method thereof

Output buffer with good ESD Protection

Method for improved programming efficiency in flash memory cells