Semiconductor device having a bipolar transistor with emitter series resistances

Claim 1

A semiconductor device, comprising a semiconductor body having a major surface with a bipolar transistor which comprises a plurality of surface-adjoining electrically parallel transistor structures, at least a number of which have different values of emitter series resistances, said transistor comprising a collector zone which is formed by a semiconductor region of a first conductivity type, a collector contact zone of said first conductivity type in contact with said collector zone and extending to said major surface, collector metallization contacting said collector contact zone at said major surface, a surface-adjoining base zone of the second, opposite conductivity type which adjoins the collector zone, base metallization contacting said base zone via a plurality of base contact windows in an insulating layer at said surface, and a surface-adjoining emitter zone of the first conductivity type which is formed in the base zone and which comprises a plurality of surface-adjoining active emitter regions of equal length which are situated near the base contact windows and which comprise the emitters of the transistor structures, said emitter zone further comprising a plurality of surface-adjoining emitter contact regions contacted by a substantially continuous emitter metallization via emitter contact windows in the insulating layer, and a plurality of emitter connection regions which interconnect the emitter contact regions and the active emitter regions, wherein said different values of emitter series resistance in the transistor structures are obtained by providing means for varying the lengths of said emitter connection regions, said means comprising emitter contact windows having different sizes, shapes and locations with respect to the emitter connection regions for at least some of the emitter contact windows.