High voltage semiconductor device

Claim 1

IN A SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE UPON WHICH HAS DESIRED REVERSE CURRENT AND BREAKDOWN VOLTAGE CHARACTERISTICS AND IN WHICH BREAKDOWN WILL OCCUR IN THE BULK OF THE SEMICONDUCTOR MATERIAL OF THE DEVICE, SEMICONDUCTOR MATERIAL IN SAID DEVICE HAVING THEREIN A FIRST REGION AND A SECOND REGION OF OPPOSITE CONDUCTIVITY TYPES ADJACENT TO ONE ANOTHER AND A JUNCTION AT THE INTERFACE OF SAID TWO REGIONS, SAID FIRST REGION AND SAID SECOND REGION EACH RESPECTIVELY HAVING A PREDETERMINED RESISTIVITY, THE COMBINATION COMPRISING A GROWN PASSIVTING COATING OVER AT LEAST A PORTION OF THE TOP SURFACE OF THE SEMICONDUCTOR MATERIAL, A CHANNEL REGION IN SAID FIRST REGION OF THE SAME CONDUCTIVITY TYPE AS THAT OF SAID SECOND REGION COMPRISING AN EXTENSION LATERALLY OUT OF SAID SECOND REGION IMMEDIATELY ADJACENT SAID TOP SURFACE BELOW SAID PASSIVATING COATING AND COMPLETELY SURROUNDING SAID SECOND REGION WHICH IS THINNER IN DEPTH FROM SAID TOP SURFACE THAN IS SAID SECOND REGION AND IS OF HIGHER RESISTIVITY THAN THE BULK MATERIAL OF SAID SECOND REGION AND OF HIGHER RESISTIVITY THAN THE RESISTIVITY OF SAID FIRST REGION, SAID CHANNEL REGION BEING OF OPPOSITE CONDUCTIVITY TYPE TO SAID FIRST REGION, WITH SAID JUNCTION ALSO EXTENDING LATERALLY FROM SAID SECOND REGION ALONG THE INTERFACE OF SAID CHANNEL REGION AND SAID FIRST REGION, AND MEANS WHICH STRUCTURALLY BLOCKS AND COMPLETELY INTERRUPTS SAID CHANNEL REGION SO AS TO PREVENT LARGE REVERSE CURRENTS FROM FLOWING THEREIN DURING THE OPERATIONOF THE SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE, SAID MEANS COMPRISING A CHANNEL-INTERRUPTING REGION IN SAID FIRST REGION AT A PLACE SPACED LATERALLY AWAY FROM SAID SECOND REGION AND COMPLETELY SURROUNDING SAID CHANNEL REGION, WHICH IS OF THE OPPOSITE CONDUCTIVITY TYPE TO THAT OF SAID CHANNEL REGION SUCH THAT SAID JUNCTION EXTENDS UPWARDLY ALONG THE INTERFACE OF SAID CHANNEL INTERUPPTING REGION AND SAID CHANNEL REGION TOWARD AND TO SAID TOP SURFACE UNDERNEATH SAID PASSIVATING COATING, SAID CHANNEL-INTERRUPTING REGION BEING OF THE SAME CONDUCTIVITY TYPE AS THE FIRST REGION AND OF LOWER RESISTIVITY THAN THE SAME AND OF LOWER RESISTIVITY THAN SAID CHANNEL REGION, WITH SAID CHANNEL REGION IN SID LATERAL SPACING BEING OF SUCH LENGTH BETWEEN SAID CHANNEL-INTERRUPTING REGION AND SAID SECOND REGION THAT THE ENTIRE DEPLETION REGION SPREADING IN ACCOMMODATED IN THE OPERATION OF SAID SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICE.