Semiconductor element having a polymeric protective coating and glass coating overlay

Claim 1

A semiconductor element comprising: a body of semiconductor material having at least two regions of opposite type conductivity and a P-N junction disposed between, and formed by the abutting surfaces of, each pair of regions of opposite type conductivity; an end portion of at least one P-N junction exposed at a surface of the body; a layer of a protective coating material disposed on the exposed end portion of the at least one P-N junction; the protective coating material is a polymer which is, when cured, one selected from the group consisting of the reaction product of a silicon-free organic diamine and an organic tetracarboxylic dianhydride, a silicon-free organic diamine, an organic tetracarboxylic dianhydride and a polysiloxane diamine and a blend of polyimide compound of recurring structural units of the formula: ##STR10## with a polyimide, as required, composed of recurring structural units of the formula: ##STR11## wherein the molar proportion of the latter is from 0 to 50 mol percent wherein R is a divalent hydrocarbon radical, R' is a monovalent hydrocarbon radical, R" is a tetravalent organic radical, Q is a divalent silicon-free organic radical which is the residue of an organic diamine, x is a whole number equal to at least 1 and advantageously from 1 to 8 and as high as 1 to 10,000 or more, m is an integer greater than 1 n is zero or an integer greater than 0, and at least one layer of a glass material disposed on the layer of protective coating material.