Optical voltage source

Abstract

An optical voltage source and decoupling device is provided, wherein the optical voltage source has a number N of series-connected semiconductor diodes, each having a p-n junction, the semiconductor diodes are monolithically integrated and together form a first stack with an upper side and an underside, and the number N of the semiconductor diodes of the first stack is greater than or equal to two, the decoupling device has a further semiconductor diode. The further semiconductor diode has a pin junction and, the further semiconductor diode is anti-serially connected with the semiconductor diodes of the first stack. An underside of the further semiconductor diode is materially connected with the upper side of the first stack and the further semiconductor diode forms a total stack together with the first stack.

Claims

1. An optical voltage source and a decoupling device comprising: a plurality of N series-connected semiconductor diodes, each of the plurality of N series-connected semiconductor diodes having a p-n junction, the semiconductor diodes being monolithically integrated; the optical voltage source comprising a first stack formed by the plurality of N series-connected semiconductor diodes, the first stack having an upper side and an underside, wherein a number of N semiconductor diodes of the first stack is greater than or equal to two; and the decoupling device comprising a second stack with a further semiconductor diode having a p-i-n junction, the second stack having an upper side and an underside, the further semiconductor diode being anti-serially connected with the semiconductor diodes of the first stack via a resistor such that a cathode of the further semiconductor diode is electrically conductively connected with a cathode of an uppermost diode of the first stack, and comprising a capacitor electrically conductively connected such that the decoupling device is configured to pick up a data signal, wherein the underside of the further semiconductor diode is materially connected with the upper side of the first stack, and wherein the second stack with the further semiconductor diode forms a total stack together with the first stack.

2. The optical voltage source and decoupling device according to claim 1, wherein, in a projection perpendicular to the upper side of the first stack, the further semiconductor diode covers at most 50% or at most 30% or at most 10% of the upper side of the first stack.

3. The optical voltage source and decoupling device according to claim 1, wherein a capacitance of the further semiconductor diode does not exceed 10 pF.

4. The optical voltage source and decoupling device according to claim 1, wherein the semiconductor diodes and the further semiconductor diode are monolithically integrated.

5. The optical voltage source and decoupling device according to claim 1, wherein a first contact is arranged on the upper side of the first stack at a distance to the further semiconductor diode.

6. The optical voltage source and decoupling device according to claim 5, wherein the first contact is electrically conductively connected with the cathode of the further semiconductor diode and with the cathode of the semiconductor diode, which adjoins the upper side of the first stack.

7. The optical voltage source and decoupling device according to claim 1, wherein a second contact is arranged on the upper side of the further semiconductor diode.

8. The optical voltage source and decoupling device according to claim 1, wherein a third contact surface is arranged on the underside of the first stack, or wherein the underside of the first stack is cohesively connected with an upper side of a carrier substrate and the third contact is arranged on an underside of the carrier substrate.

9. The optical voltage source and decoupling device according to claim 1, wherein the total stack comprises a carrier substrate, and wherein the underside of the first stack is materially connected with an upper side of the carrier substrate or with a conductive intermediate layer which completely overlaps the upper side of the carrier substrate.

10. The optical voltage source and decoupling device according to claim 9, wherein, in a projection perpendicular to the upper side of the first stack, the carrier substrate forms a peripheral edge around the first stack.

11. The optical voltage source and decoupling device according to claim 10, wherein a third contact is arranged on the peripheral edge of the carrier substrate.

12. The optical voltage source and decoupling device according to claim 8, wherein the third contact is electrically conductively connected with an anode of a lowermost semiconductor diode, which adjoins the underside of the first stack.

13. The optical voltage source and decoupling device according to claim 1, wherein the semiconductor diodes of the first stack and/or the further semiconductor diode comprise a III-V semiconductor material or consist of a III-V semiconductor material.

14. The optical voltage source and decoupling device according to claim 13, wherein the III-V semiconductor material is GaAs.

15. The optical voltage source and decoupling device according to claim 1, wherein a tunnel diode is formed between in each case two successive semiconductor diodes of the first sub-stack.

16. The optical voltage source and decoupling device according to claim 1, wherein at least two semiconductor diodes of a first stack have an identical sequence of semiconductor layers, and wherein the respective mutually corresponding layers of the at least two semiconductor diodes have an identical stoichiometry.

17. The optical voltage source and decoupling device according to claim 1, wherein the further semiconductor diode has a sequence of stacked semiconductor layers and the sequence is identical or not identical to the sequence of the semiconductor layers of one of the semiconductor diodes of the first stack.

18. The optical voltage source and decoupling device according to claim 1, wherein the further semiconductor diode has a cutoff frequency of 250 kHz or above.

19. The optical voltage source and decoupling device according to claim 1, further comprising: a first contact arranged on the upper side of the first stack, the first contact being electrically conductively connected to a cathode of an uppermost semiconductor diode of the first stack and to a cathode of the further semiconductor diode of the second stack; a second contact arranged on the upper side of the second stack, the second contact being electrically conductively connected to an anode of the further semiconductor diode of the second stack; and a third contact arranged below the underside of the first stack, the third contact being electrically conductively connected to an anode of a lowermost semiconductor diode of the first stack; a wherein the resistor whose one end is electrically conductively connected to the second contact and whose other end is electrically conductively connected to the third contact such that the further semiconductor diode is reverse biased by a source voltage of the optical voltage source between the first contact and the third contact.

20. The optical voltage source and decoupling device according to claim 19, wherein the capacitor has one end electrically conductively connected to the second contact such that the decoupling device is configured to pick up the data signal between the second contact and the third contact.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) The present invention will become more fully understood from the detailed description given hereinbelow and the accompanying drawings which are given by way of illustration only, and thus, are not limitive of the present invention, and wherein:

(2) FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram of a first embodiment according to the invention of an optical voltage source and a decoupling device,

(3) FIG. 2 is a schematic sectional view of a first embodiment according to the invention of the voltage source and parts of the decoupling device in FIG. 1,

(4) FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view of the embodiment in FIG. 2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(5) FIG. 1 schematically shows a circuit diagram of a first embodiment of an optical voltage source and a decoupling device.

(6) The optical voltage source comprises a number N of series-connected semiconductor diodes D1, D2 to DN. The semiconductor diodes D1, D2, and DN form a first stack ST1. A second stack ST2 is arranged on the first stack ST1. The second stack ST2 comprises a further semiconductor diode DPIN. Preferably, the first stack ST1 and the second stack ST2 are monolithically integrated.

(7) The decoupling device comprises the further semiconductor diode DPIN and an RC element formed of a resistor R.sub.D and a capacitor C for picking up a data signal Vdata. The further semiconductor diode DPIN is anti-serially connected to the semiconductor diodes D1, D2 to DN by means of a first electrical contact K1, that is, the cathode of the further semiconductor diode and the cathode of the uppermost semiconductor diode D1 of the first stack ST1 are electrically conductively connected with the first contact point K1.

(8) The anode of the lowermost semiconductor diode DN of the first stack ST1 is electrically conductively connected with a third electrical contact K3. The anode of the further semiconductor diode Dpin is electrically conductively connected with the third contact K3 by means of a second electrical contact K2 and the resistor R.sub.D, whereby the further semiconductor diode Dpin is biased in the reverse direction by a source voltage Vsup of the optical voltage source.

(9) Via a capacitor C, a data signal Vdata is tapped off at the second contact K2, opposite the third contact K3.

(10) In the illustration of FIG. 2, a first embodiment of the optical voltage source is shown with parts of the decoupling device as an integrated component. The illustration of FIG. 3 shows a plan view of the integrated component according to the embodiment of FIG. 2. In the following, only the differences from the illustration of FIG. 1 will be explained.

(11) The N series-connected semiconductor diodes D1, D2 to DN form a first stack ST1. On an upper side of the first stack ST1, the further diode Dpin and a contact surface as first contact K1 are arranged at a distance from one another. An underside of the further diode Dpin is cohesively connected with the upper side of the first stack ST1 and together with the first stack ST1 forms a total stack STG. A second contact surface K2 is arranged on an upper side of the further diode Dpin.

(12) An underside of the first stack ST1 is cohesively connected with the upper side of a carrier substrate SUB as another layer of the total stack STG, wherein in a projection perpendicular to the upper side of the first stack, the carrier substrate SUB forms a peripheral edge UR around the first stack ST1. As the third contact K3, a conductive coating covers an underside of the carrier substrate SUB.

(13) Other components, such as the RC element from FIG. 1, are realized externally according to this embodiment.

(14) The invention being thus described, it will be obvious that the same may be varied in many ways. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the spirit and scope of the invention, and all such modifications as would be obvious to one skilled in the art are to be included within the scope of the following claims.