In a trench gate type power MOSFET having a super-junction structure, both improvement of a breakdown voltage of a device and reduction of on-resistance are achieved. The trench gate and a column region are arranged so as to be substantially orthogonal to each other in a plan view, and a base region (channel forming region) and the column region are arranged separately in a cross-sectional view.

In an embodiment, a semiconductor device is provided that includes a main transistor having a load path, a sense transistor configured to sense a main current flowing in the load path of the main transistor, and at least one bypass diode structure configured to protect the sense transistor. The at least one bypass diode structure is electrically coupled in parallel with the sense transistor.

A power semiconductor device includes a semiconductor layer, a ladder-shaped trench recessed a specific depth from a surface of the semiconductor layer into the semiconductor layer and including a pair of lines having a first depth and a plurality of connectors connected between the pair of lines and having a second depth shallower than the first depth, a well region defined in the semiconductor layer between the pair of lines and between the plurality of connectors of the trench, a floating region defined in the semiconductor layer outside the pair of lines of the trench, a gate insulating layer disposed on an inner wall of the trench, and a gate electrode layer disposed on the gate insulating layer to fill the trench and including a first portion in which the pair of lines is filled and a second portion in which the plurality of connectors is filled. A depth of the second portion of the gate electrode layer is shallower than a depth of the first portion of the gate electrode layer.

A main semiconductor device element has first and second p.sup.+-type high-concentration regions that mitigate electric field applied to bottoms of trenches. The first p.sup.+-type high-concentration regions are provided separate from p-type base regions, face the bottoms of the trenches in a depth direction, and extend in a linear shape in a first direction that is a same direction in which the trenches extend. Between adjacent trenches of the trenches, the second p.sup.+-type high-concentration regions are provided scattered in the first direction, separate from the first p.sup.+-type high-concentration regions and the trenches and in contact with the p-type base regions. Between the second p.sup.+-type high-concentration regions adjacent to one another in the first direction, n-type current spreading regions or n.sup.+-type high-concentration regions having an impurity concentration higher than that of the n-type current spreading regions are provided in contact with the second p.sup.+-type high-concentration regions.

A semiconductor assembly includes a semiconductor switching device, a conductive load base structure, and a current sense unit. The semiconductor switching device includes a drain structure and one or more array units, wherein each array unit includes a load pad and a plurality of transistor cells electrically connected in parallel between the load pad of the array unit and the drain structure. The current sense unit is electrically connected between a first one of the load pads and the load base structure.

A semiconductor device 100 has a power transistor N1 of vertical structure and a temperature detection element 10a configured to detect abnormal heat generation by the power transistor N1. The power transistor N1 includes a first electrode 208 formed on a first main surface side (front surface side) of a semiconductor substrate 200, a second electrode 209 formed on a second main surface side (rear surface side) of the semiconductor substrate 200, and pads 210a-210f positioned unevenly on the first electrode 208. The temperature detection element 10a is formed at a location of the highest heat generation by the power transistor N1, the location (near the pad 210b where it is easiest for current to be concentrated) being specified using the uneven positioning of the pads 210a-210f.

A silicon carbide device includes a stripe-shaped trench gate structure extending from a first surface into a silicon carbide body. The gate structure has a gate length along a lateral first direction. A bottom surface and an active first gate sidewall of the gate structure are connected via a first bottom edge of the gate structure. The silicon carbide device further includes at least one source region of a first conductivity type. A shielding region of a second conductivity type is in contact with the first bottom edge of the gate structure across at least 20% of the gate length.

A power device can be structured with a power switch having multiple arrangements such that the power switch can operate as a power switch with the capability to measure properties of the power switch. An example power device can comprise a main arrangement of transistor cells and a sensor arrangement of sensor transistor cells. The main arrangement can be structured to operate as a power switch, with the transistor cells of the main arrangement having control nodes connected in parallel to receive a common control signal. The sensor arrangement of sensor transistor cells can be structured to measure one or more parameters of the main arrangement, with the sensor transistor cells having sensor control nodes connected in parallel to receive a common sensor control signal. The sensor transistor cells can have a common transistor terminal shared with a common transistor terminal of the transistor cells of the main arrangement.

A body diode is energized by inputting a BD energization pulse signal having a predetermined cycle. At the start of energization of the body diode and immediately before termination thereof, an ON signal of a Von measurement pulse signal is input to a high-temperature semiconductor chip at a timing different from that of an ON signal of the BD energization pulse signal, thereby passing a drain-source current through a MOSFET, and a drain-source voltage is measured. Thereafter, energization of the body diode is terminated. At room temperature before and after the energization of the body diode, the drain-source voltage is measured by inputting the ON signal of the Von measurement pulse signal. A semiconductor chip for which a fluctuation amount of the drain-source voltage at a high temperature and a fluctuation amount of the drain-source voltage at room temperature are within predetermined ranges is determined to be a conforming product.

An object of the present disclosure is to achieve a stable current sensing operation and suppress decrease in main current at a low temperature of 0° C. or less in a silicon carbide semiconductor device. An SiC-MOSFET includes: a main cell outputting main current; and a sense cell outputting sense current proportional to the main current, wherein temperature dependent properties of the main current differ in accordance with threshold voltage of the main cell, temperature dependent properties of the sense current differ in accordance with threshold voltage of the sense cell, the threshold voltage of the main cell is smaller than the threshold voltage of the sense cell, and in a temperature of 0° C. or less, an inclination of the temperature dependent properties of the main current is smaller than an inclination of the temperature dependent properties of the sense current.