Active solid-state devices (e.g. – transistors – solid-state diode – Field effect device – Having insulated electrode
Reexamination Certificate
2000-07-14
2001-11-20
Williams, Alexander O. (Department: 2826)
Active solid-state devices (e.g., transistors, solid-state diode
Field effect device
Having insulated electrode
C257S299000, C257S290000, C257S030000, C257S025000, C257S014000, C365S185010, C365S185180
Reexamination Certificate
active
06320220
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a quantum effect device and the like used for super-integration of an electronic circuit.
The semiconductor industry has achieved a high degree of integration by reducing an area occupied by one functional element and developed together with improvements on technologies, for example, of a process, an element, circuit design and the like to achieve such a high degree of integration.
As a switching element used for switching in a semiconductor chip, while a MOS transistor has mainly employed, control of a diffused layer formed in an Si substrate has been harder and in addition improvement on reliability of an isolation oxide film has been problematic since the transistor is operated by applying an electric field to an interface with progress in miniaturization of an element. Particularly, in connection with the reliability of an isolation oxide film, it has been widely known that a trap level caused by an impurity, a defect and the like in the oxide film and a high electric field encourage tunneling of electrons and generate a leakage current.
Under such circumstances, although efforts have been conducted to improve a film quality at a molecular level in order to solve the problem, it has not sufficiently been understood how to improve the film quality and therefore, it is hard to improve a film quality at a molecular level in a semiconductor fabrication process under the current technologies, so that it is considered that the improvement is rather impossible. Further, since a semiconductor substrate which is uniform in structure and in composition has been employed, it is difficult to fabricate various devices in one chip.
For such reasons, a functional element, which has a margin in film quality, whose switching function is not deteriorated even with the presence of a some leakage current, and which has no diffused layer has been required. In detail, it is required to provide a function element, which operates at a low voltage of 1V or lower, and which can make a current drastically larger than a leakage current flow in a conductive condition or a circuit device which uses a semiconductor composite substrate and various kinds of converter, and which can process an optical signal, an analogue signal, a digital signal and the like at the same time.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide a new switching element having the above mentioned features and a circuit device and the like using the same new switching element.
A quantum effect device according to the present invention has a feature that a tunnel current is increased exponentially by making a quantum absorbed by tunneling electron in or releasing it from a tunneling electron.
A quantum effect device according to the present invention has a feature that a tunnel current is increased exponentially by making a quantum absorbed by tunneling electron in or releasing it from a tunneling electron and switching is conducted based on presence or non-presence of the increase of the tunnel current.
In the quantum effect device, as the quantum, for example, a photon or excitation of energy by a high frequency vibration of a potential barrier is used. Particularly, increase in a tunnel current caused by the latter is called BL tunneling.
A quantum effect device according to the present invention has a feature that the device comprises a tunnel film and a pair of electrodes with the tunnel film interposing therebetween, wherein a tunnel current flowing between the pair of electrodes is increased exponentially by quantum exchange between light passing through the tunnel film and a tunneling electron flowing between the pair of electrodes.
A quantum effect device according to the present invention has a feature that the device comprises a first and second terminals, and a tunnel film through which a tunnel current is let to flow between those two terminals, wherein a high frequency vibration is given to a potential barrier of the tunnel film by applying a high frequency to at least one of the first and second terminals and thus the tunnel current flowing through the tunnel film is increased with the frequency if it is larger than a predetermined threshold frequency as a boundary value (BL tunneling). Particularly, such a quantum effect device is called a two terminal BL tunnel element.
A quantum effect device according to the present invention has a feature that the device comprises a first and second terminals, and a tunnel film through which a tunnel current is let to flow between those two terminals and a third terminal by which a high frequency vibration is given to a potential barrier of the tunnel film, wherein the tunnel current flowing through the tunnel film is increased with the frequency if it is larger than a predetermined threshold vibration frequency as a boundary value (BL tunneling). Particularly, such an quantum effect device is called a three-terminal BL tunnel element.
A quantum effect device according to the present invention has a feature that the device comprises a first tunnel film formed on a substrate, a first gate formed on the first tunnel film, a second tunnel film formed on the first gate and a second gate formed on the second tunnel film, wherein a tunnel current flowing between the first gate and the substrate or the first gate and the second gate is increased with a high frequency vibration input to the first or the second gate if the frequency is larger than a predetermined threshold vibration frequency as a boundary value.
A quantum effect device according to the present invention has a feature that the device comprises: a channel region formed in semiconductor underlying an insulating film interposing a first and second terminals by which a tunnel current is let to flow through the channel region, and which are located in corresponding manner to both ends of the channel region; and a third terminal located across the insulating film and giving a high frequency vibration to a potential barrier of the channel region, wherein the tunnel current flowing through the channel region is increased with the frequency if it is larger than a predetermined threshold vibration frequency as a boundary value.
A semiconductor composite substrate according to the present invention has a feature that the substrate comprises: plural kinds of semiconductor region which are different from each other or one another in composition or structure each in the shape of a band; and a substrate isolation region sandwiched between semiconductor regions.
According to the present invention, since quantum absorption in a tunneling electron is used as a operational principle, there can be obtained a new device which has a feature that a margin in reliability of an insulating film is secured.
Besides, since the semiconductor composite substrate is used, semiconductor regions of respectively different characteristics can be formed in one chip, so that, for example, a high frequency generator and the quantum effect device can be formed in respective semiconductor regions which are suitable for the generator and the device.
Detailed embodiments of the present invention will be described in aspects of the present inventions A to M in a separate manner.
[A Constitution of an Aspect A of the Present Invention]
(Feature: A1)
The aspect A has a feature that a quantum effect switching device is constituted in such a manner that a tunneling electron is subjected to an intentional quantum exchange and thereby a quantity of a tunnel current is adjusted at an exponential rate.
(Feature: A2)
A feature is that the switching device set forth in A1 comprises a thin tunnel film, two electrodes, and a quantum generator which can directly exchange a quantum with a tunneling electron in said tunnel film interposing between said two electrodes.
(Feature: A3)
A feature is that the switching device is constituted in such a manner that a tunnel current is increased by a factor of exp (2 &ohgr;/&ohgr;o) when the tunneling electron in the tunnel film set
Tanaka Tomoharu
Tanzawa Toru
Toriumi Akira
Watanabe Hiroshi
Yasuda Naoki
Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba
Oblon & Spivak, McClelland, Maier & Neustadt P.C.
Williams Alexander O.
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