Patents Examined by Alice Hsuanchen Wu
  • Patent number: 5258638
    Abstract: A layout of a MOSFET current driver is disclosed which improves the fabrication yield and the current drive capability over that of the prior art while keeping the layout area the same as the prior art. In this design, the gate is laid out to have a lateral serpentine pattern rather than a vertical serpentine pattern to create a larger gate in order to improve the current drive capability. In addition, the contacts for the drain and the contacts for the source are removed from the gate layout area which facilitates condensing the gate layout and increasing the size of the gate. Also, this design has only two metal strips: one for the drain and one for the source of the MOSFET current driver. The two metal strips substantially overlap the serpentine patterned gate. Having only two metal strips reduces the spaces between the metal strips to one space thereby reducing the probability of having a short or a defect and improving the fabrication yield.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 13, 1992
    Date of Patent: November 2, 1993
    Assignee: Xerox Corporation
    Inventors: Abdul M. Elhatem, Steven A. Buhler