Thyristor with pressure contacting

Claim 1

In a thyristor including a wafer shaped semiconductor body with four zones of alternatingly opposite conductivity type between the opposed major surfaces of said semiconductor body and with the cathode zone and a portion of the adjacent control base zone extending to a common one of said major surfaces and being contiguous at said common major surface, a cathode electrode ohmically contacting said cathode zone on said commmon major surface, a control electrode ohmically contacting said portion of said control zone on said common major surface, means for insulating said cathode and gate electrodes from one another, and means for electrically pressure contacting said cathode electrode; the improvement wherein: said means for insulating includes a layer of solid insulating material which covers those portions of said common major surface which are not provided with electrodes and said control electrode except for a contact portion for said control electrode, the planar surface of said insulating layer lying at a level other than that of the cathode electrode surface; and said means for pressure contacting said cathode electrode comprises a metal contacting wafer which is covered, at least on the surface thereof contacting said cathode electrode, with a layer of a highly conductive, ductile material whose maximum thickness is greater than the difference in the levels of the surfaces of said insulating layer and of said cathode electrode, said cathode electrode being provided with an opening over said contact portion for said control electrode.