A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device includes: providing a semiconductor substrate; epitaxially growing a first semiconductor layer coupled to the semiconductor substrate; epitaxially growing a second semiconductor layer coupled to the first semiconductor layer, wherein the second semiconductor layer comprises a contact region and a terminal region surrounding the contact region; forming a mask layer on the second semiconductor layer, wherein the mask layer is patterned with a tapered region aligned with the terminal region of the second semiconductor layer; implanting ions into the terminal region of the second semiconductor layer using the mask layer to form a tapered junction termination element in the terminal region of the second semiconductor layer; and forming a contact structure in the contact region of the second semiconductor layer.

A switched-mode power supply includes a power semiconductor device that includes a semiconductor body comprising transistor cells and a drift zone between a drain layer and the transistor cells, the transistor cells comprising source zones, wherein the device exhibits a first output charge gradient when a voltage between the drain layer and the source zones of the transistor cells increases from a depletion voltage of the semiconductor device to a maximum drain/source voltage of the semiconductor device, wherein the device exhibits a second output charge gradient when a voltage between the drain layer and the source zones of the semiconductor device decreases from the maximum drain/source voltage to the depletion voltage of the semiconductor device, and wherein the semiconductor device is configured such that the first output charge gradient deviates by less than 5% from the second output charge gradient.

A semiconductor device according to an embodiment includes a gate electrode extending in a first direction, a gate insulation film that covers the gate electrode, a first semiconductor region of a first conductivity type extending in a second direction orthogonal to the first direction below the gate insulation film, and a second semiconductor region of the first conductivity type that faces the gate insulation film across the first semiconductor region. An impurity concentration of the first conductivity type of the second semiconductor region is lower than that of the first semiconductor region.

Semiconductor devices are provided. In one example, a semiconductor device includes: a substrate, a first circuit region and a second circuit region extending in a first direction, and a gate structure extending in a second direction that is substantially perpendicular to the first direction. The gate structure further includes: two gate electrode sections respectively located in the first and second circuit regions, and a low-resistance section between and interconnecting the two gate electrode sections. The two gate electrode sections are configured as gate electrodes for two transistors respectively located in the first and second circuit regions. The two gate electrodes have a first width (W.sub.0) along the first direction, the low-resistance section has a second width (W) along the first direction, and a ratio of W to W.sub.0 (W/W.sub.0) is at least 1.1.

To reduce on-resistance while suppressing a characteristic variation increase of a vertical MOSFET with a Super Junction structure, the vertical MOSFET includes a semiconductor substrate having an n-type drift region, a p-type base region formed on the surface of the n-type drift region, a plurality of p-type column regions disposed in the n-type drift region at a lower portion of the p-type base region by a predetermined interval, a plurality of trenches whose bottom surface reaches a position deeper than the p-type base region and that is disposed between the adjacent p-type column regions, a plurality of gate electrodes formed in the plurality of trenches, and an n-type source region formed on the side of the gate electrode in the p-type base region.

The semiconductor device includes a chip which has a first surface on one side and a second surface on the other side, a plurality of IGBT regions which are provided at an interval in the chip, a boundary region which is provided in a region between the plurality of IGBT regions in the chip, a first conductivity type cathode region which is formed in a surface layer portion of the second surface in the boundary region, and a second conductivity type well region which is formed in a surface layer portion of the first surface in the boundary region.

A semiconductor structure is disclosed. The semiconductor structure includes: a substrate of a first conductivity; a first region of the first conductivity formed in the substrate; a second region of the first conductivity formed in the first region, wherein the second region has a higher doping density than the first region; a source region of a second conductivity formed in the second region; a drain region of the second conductivity formed in the substrate; a pickup region of the first conductivity formed in the second region and adjacent to the source region; and a resist protective oxide (RPO) layer formed on a top surface of the second region. An associated fabricating method is also disclosed.

A first impurity diffusion region is provided within a semiconductor substrate, a second impurity diffusion region is provided within the first impurity diffusion region, a third impurity diffusion region is provided within the second impurity diffusion region, a first portion of a fourth impurity diffusion region is provided within the second impurity diffusion region so as to be spaced from the third impurity diffusion region, and a second portion of the fourth impurity diffusion region is provided in a third portion of the first impurity diffusion region on a side of a surface of the semiconductor substrate, a first contact is provided so as to be in contact with the second portion, the first contact and the third portion overlap in plan view, and a first power supply is connected to the third impurity diffusion region.

A semiconductor device includes a semiconductor body with a first surface, a contact electrode arranged on the first surface, and a passivation layer on the first surface adjacent the contact electrode. The passivation layer includes a layer stack with an amorphous semi-insulating layer on the first surface, a first nitride layer on the amorphous semi-insulating layer, and a second nitride layer on the first nitride layer.

A semiconductor device includes a semiconductor body having a semiconductor body material with a dopant diffusion coefficient that is smaller than the corresponding dopant diffusion coefficient of silicon, at least one first semiconductor region doped with dopants of a first conductivity type and having a columnar shape that extends into the semiconductor body along an extension direction, wherein a respective width of the at least one first semiconductor region continuously increases along the extension direction; and at least one second semiconductor region included in the semiconductor body. The at least one second semiconductor region is arranged adjacent to the at least one first semiconductor region, and is doped with dopants of a second conductivity type complementary to the first conductivity type.