Patents by Inventor Masashi Tsubuku
Masashi Tsubuku has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
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Patent number: 10665615Abstract: It is an object to manufacture a highly reliable display device using a thin film transistor having favorable electric characteristics and high reliability as a switching element. In a bottom gate thin film transistor including an amorphous oxide semiconductor, an oxide conductive layer having a crystal region is formed between an oxide semiconductor layer which has been dehydrated or dehydrogenated by heat treatment and each of a source electrode layer and a drain electrode layer which are formed using a metal material. Accordingly, contact resistance between the oxide semiconductor layer and each of the source electrode layer and the drain electrode layer can be reduced; thus, a thin film transistor having favorable electric characteristics and a highly reliable display device using the thin film transistor can be provided.Type: GrantFiled: September 12, 2019Date of Patent: May 26, 2020Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.Inventors: Shunpei Yamazaki, Toshinari Sasaki, Junichiro Sakata, Masashi Tsubuku
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Publication number: 20200144059Abstract: A method for manufacturing a sputtering target with which an oxide semiconductor film with a small amount of defects can be formed is provided. Alternatively, an oxide semiconductor film with a small amount of defects is formed. A method for manufacturing a sputtering target is provided, which includes the steps of: forming a polycrystalline In-M-Zn oxide (M represents a metal chosen among aluminum, titanium, gallium, yttrium, zirconium, lanthanum, cesium, neodymium, and hafnium) powder by mixing, sintering, and grinding indium oxide, an oxide of the metal, and zinc oxide; forming a mixture by mixing the polycrystalline In-M-Zn oxide powder and a zinc oxide powder; forming a compact by compacting the mixture; and sintering the compact.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 30, 2019Publication date: May 7, 2020Inventors: Shunpei YAMAZAKI, Masashi TSUBUKU, Masashi OOTA, Yoichi KUROSAWA, Noritaka ISHIHARA
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Patent number: 10629627Abstract: The semiconductor device includes a driver circuit portion including a driver circuit and a pixel portion including a pixel. The pixel includes a gate electrode layer having a light-transimitting property, a gate insulating layer, a source electrode layer and a drain electrode layer each having a light-transmitting property provided over the gate insulating layer, an oxide semiconductor layer covering top surfaces and side surfaces of the source electrode layer and the drain electrode layer and provided over the gate electrode layer with the gate insulating layer therebetween, a conductive layer provided over part of the oxide semiconductor layer and having a lower resistance than the source electrode layer and the drain electrode layer, and an oxide insulating layer in contact with part of the oxide semiconductor layer.Type: GrantFiled: March 16, 2017Date of Patent: April 21, 2020Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.Inventors: Masayuki Sakakura, Yoshiaki Oikawa, Shunpei Yamazaki, Junichiro Sakata, Masashi Tsubuku, Kengo Akimoto, Miyuki Hosoba
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Patent number: 10622485Abstract: A semiconductor device includes a gate electrode, a gate insulating film which includes oxidized material containing silicon and covers the gate electrode, an oxide semiconductor film provided to be in contact with the gate insulating film and overlap with at least the gate electrode, and a source electrode and a drain electrode electrically connected to the oxide semiconductor film. In the oxide semiconductor film, a first region which is provided to be in contact with the gate insulating film and have a thickness less than or equal to 5 nm has a silicon concentration lower than or equal to 1.0 at. %, and a region in the oxide semiconductor film other than the first region has lower silicon concentration than the first region. At least the first region includes a crystal portion.Type: GrantFiled: April 11, 2019Date of Patent: April 14, 2020Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.Inventors: Tatsuya Honda, Masashi Tsubuku, Yusuke Nonaka, Takashi Shimazu, Shunpei Yamazaki
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Patent number: 10593810Abstract: A logic circuit includes a thin film transistor having a channel formation region formed using an oxide semiconductor, and a capacitor having terminals one of which is brought into a floating state by turning off the thin film transistor. The oxide semiconductor has a hydrogen concentration of 5×1019 (atoms/cm3) or less and thus substantially serves as an insulator in a state where an electric field is not generated. Therefore, off-state current of a thin film transistor can be reduced, leadind to suppressing the leakage of electric charge stored in a capacitor, through the thin film transistor. Accordingly, a malfunction of the logic circuit can be prevented. Further, the excessive amount of current which flows in the logic circuit can be reduced through the reduction of off-state current of the thin film transistor, resulting in low power consumption of the logic circuit.Type: GrantFiled: August 29, 2019Date of Patent: March 17, 2020Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.Inventors: Shunpei Yamazaki, Jun Koyama, Masashi Tsubuku, Kosei Noda
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Patent number: 10593710Abstract: To reduce a leakage current of a transistor so that malfunction of a logic circuit can be suppressed. The logic circuit includes a transistor which includes an oxide semiconductor layer having a function of a channel formation layer and in which an off current is 1×10?13 A or less per micrometer in channel width. A first signal, a second signal, and a third signal that is a clock signal are input as input signals. A fourth signal and a fifth signal whose voltage states are set in accordance with the first to third signals which have been input are output as output signals.Type: GrantFiled: June 14, 2018Date of Patent: March 17, 2020Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.Inventors: Shunpei Yamazaki, Jun Koyama, Masashi Tsubuku, Kosei Noda
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Patent number: 10586869Abstract: An object is to manufacture a semiconductor device including an oxide semiconductor film, which has stable electric characteristics and high reliability. A crystalline oxide semiconductor film is formed, without performing a plurality of steps, as follows: by utilizing a difference in atomic weight of plural kinds of atoms included in an oxide semiconductor target, zinc with low atomic weight is preferentially deposited on an oxide insulating film to form a seed crystal including zinc; and tin, indium, or the like with high atomic weight is deposited on the seed crystal while causing crystal growth. Further, a crystalline oxide semiconductor film is formed by causing crystal growth using a seed crystal with a hexagonal crystal structure including zinc as a nucleus, whereby a single crystal oxide semiconductor film or a substantially single crystal oxide semiconductor film is formed.Type: GrantFiled: July 20, 2015Date of Patent: March 10, 2020Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.Inventors: Shunpei Yamazaki, Yusuke Nonaka, Takayuki Inoue, Masashi Tsubuku, Kengo Akimoto, Akiharu Miyanaga
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Publication number: 20200066918Abstract: A display device including a pixel having a memory. The pixel includes at least a display element, a capacitor, an inverter, and a switch. The switch is controlled with a signal held in the capacitor and a signal output from the inverter so that voltage is supplied to the display element. The inverter and the switch can be constituted by transistors with the same polarity. A semiconductor layer included in the pixel may be formed using a light-transmitting material. Moreover, a gate electrode, a drain electrode, and a capacitor electrode may be formed using a light-transmitting conductive layer. The pixel is formed using a light-transmitting material in such a manner, whereby the display device can be a transmissive display device while including a pixel having a memory.Type: ApplicationFiled: October 29, 2019Publication date: February 27, 2020Inventors: Hajime KIMURA, Kengo AKIMOTO, Masashi TSUBUKU, Toshinari SASAKI
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Publication number: 20200066761Abstract: The semiconductor device includes a driver circuit portion including a driver circuit and a pixel portion including a pixel. The pixel includes a gate electrode layer having a light-transmitting property, a gate insulating layer, a source electrode layer and a drain electrode layer each having a light-transmitting property provided over the gate insulating layer, an oxide semiconductor layer covering top surfaces and side surfaces of the source electrode layer and the drain electrode layer and provided over the gate electrode layer with the gate insulating layer therebetween, a conductive layer provided over part of the oxide semiconductor layer and having a lower resistance than the source electrode layer and the drain electrode layer, and an oxide insulating layer in contact with part of the oxide semiconductor layer.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 4, 2019Publication date: February 27, 2020Inventors: Masayuki SAKAKURA, Yoshiaki OIKAWA, Shunpei YAMAZAKI, Junichiro SAKATA, Masashi TSUBUKU, Kengo AKIMOTO, Miyuki HOSOBA
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Publication number: 20200066884Abstract: The on-state characteristics of a transistor are improved and thus, a semiconductor device capable of high-speed response and high-speed operation is provided. A highly reliable semiconductor device showing stable electric characteristics is made. The semiconductor device includes a transistor including a first oxide layer; an oxide semiconductor layer over the first oxide layer; a source electrode layer and a drain electrode layer in contact with the oxide semiconductor layer; a second oxide layer over the oxide semiconductor layer; a gate insulating layer over the second oxide layer; and a gate electrode layer over the gate insulating layer. An end portion of the second oxide layer and an end portion of the gate insulating layer overlap with the source electrode layer and the drain electrode layer.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 1, 2019Publication date: February 27, 2020Inventors: Shunpei YAMAZAKI, Hideomi SUZAWA, Shinya SASAGAWA, Motomu KURATA, Masashi TSUBUKU
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Patent number: 10565946Abstract: In a liquid crystal display device including a plurality of pixels in a display portion and configured to performed display in a plurality of frame periods, each of the frame periods includes a writing period and a holding period, and after an image signal is input to each of the plurality of pixels in the writing period, a transistor included in each of the plurality of pixels is turned off and the image signal is held for at least 30 seconds in the holding period. The pixel includes a semiconductor layer including an oxide semiconductor layer, and the oxide semiconductor layer has a carrier concentration of less than 1×1014/cm3.Type: GrantFiled: November 28, 2017Date of Patent: February 18, 2020Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.Inventors: Shunpei Yamazaki, Ryo Arasawa, Jun Koyama, Masashi Tsubuku, Kosei Noda
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Patent number: 10559667Abstract: A semiconductor device in which a transistor has the characteristic of low off-state current is provided. The transistor comprises an oxide semiconductor layer having a channel region whose channel width is smaller than 70 nm. A temporal change in off-state current of the transistor over time can be represented by Formula (a2). In Formula (a2), IOFF represents the off-state current, t represents time during which the transistor is off, ? and ? are constants, ? is a constant that satisfies 0<??1, and CS is a constant that represents load capacitance of a source or a drain.Type: GrantFiled: August 20, 2015Date of Patent: February 11, 2020Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.Inventors: Masashi Tsubuku, Shunpei Yamazaki, Hidetomo Kobayashi, Kazuaki Ohshima, Masashi Fujita, Toshihiko Takeuchi
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Patent number: 10553726Abstract: An object is to provide a memory device including a memory element that can be operated without problems by a thin film transistor with a low off-state current. Provided is a memory device in which a memory element including at least one thin film transistor that includes an oxide semiconductor layer is arranged as a matrix. The thin film transistor including an oxide semiconductor layer has a high field effect mobility and low off-state current, and thus can be operated favorably without problems. In addition, the power consumption can be reduced. Such a memory device is particularly effective in the case where the thin film transistor including an oxide semiconductor layer is provided in a pixel of a display device because the memory device and the pixel can be formed over one substrate.Type: GrantFiled: August 8, 2017Date of Patent: February 4, 2020Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.Inventors: Shunpei Yamazaki, Masashi Tsubuku, Kosei Noda, Kouhei Toyotaka, Kazunori Watanabe, Hikaru Harada
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Publication number: 20200006393Abstract: It is an object to manufacture a highly reliable display device using a thin film transistor having favorable electric characteristics and high reliability as a switching element. In a bottom gate thin film transistor including an amorphous oxide semiconductor, an oxide conductive layer having a crystal region is formed between an oxide semiconductor layer which has been dehydrated or dehydrogenated by heat treatment and each of a source electrode layer and a drain electrode layer which are formed using a metal material. Accordingly, contact resistance between the oxide semiconductor layer and each of the source electrode layer and the drain electrode layer can be reduced; thus, a thin film transistor having favorable electric characteristics and a highly reliable display device using the thin film transistor can be provided.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 12, 2019Publication date: January 2, 2020Inventors: Shunpei YAMAZAKI, Toshinari SASAKI, Junichiro SAKATA, Masashi TSUBUKU
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Patent number: 10522347Abstract: A method for manufacturing a sputtering target with which an oxide semiconductor film with a small amount of defects can be formed is provided. Alternatively, an oxide semiconductor film with a small amount of defects is formed. A method for manufacturing a sputtering target is provided, which includes the steps of: forming a polycrystalline In-M-Zn oxide (M represents a metal chosen among aluminum, titanium, gallium, yttrium, zirconium, lanthanum, cesium, neodymium, and hafnium) powder by mixing, sintering, and grinding indium oxide, an oxide of the metal, and zinc oxide; forming a mixture by mixing the polycrystalline In-M-Zn oxide powder and a zinc oxide powder; forming a compact by compacting the mixture; and sintering the compact.Type: GrantFiled: March 7, 2017Date of Patent: December 31, 2019Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.Inventors: Shunpei Yamazaki, Masashi Tsubuku, Masashi Oota, Yoichi Kurosawa, Noritaka Ishihara
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Publication number: 20190386141Abstract: A logic circuit includes a thin film transistor having a channel formation region formed using an oxide semiconductor, and a capacitor having terminals one of which is brought into a floating state by turning off the thin film transistor. The oxide semiconductor has a hydrogen concentration of 5×1019 (atoms/cm3) or less and thus substantially serves as an insulator in a state where an electric field is not generated. Therefore, off-state current of a thin film transistor can be reduced, leadind to suppressing the leakage of electric charge stored in a capacitor, through the thin film transistor. Accordingly, a malfunction of the logic circuit can be prevented. Further, the excessive amount of current which flows in the logic circuit can be reduced through the reduction of off-state current of the thin film transistor, resulting in low power consumption of the logic circuit.Type: ApplicationFiled: August 29, 2019Publication date: December 19, 2019Inventors: Shunpei YAMAZAKI, Jun KOYAMA, Masashi TSUBUKU, Kosei NODA
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Patent number: 10490671Abstract: A logic circuit includes a thin film transistor having a channel formation region formed using an oxide semiconductor, and a capacitor having terminals one of which is brought into a floating state by turning off the thin film transistor. The oxide semiconductor has a hydrogen concentration of 5×1019 (atoms/cm3) or less and thus substantially serves as an insulator in a state where an electric field is not generated. Therefore, off-state current of a thin film transistor can be reduced, leading to suppressing the leakage of electric charge stored in a capacitor, through the thin film transistor. Accordingly, a malfunction of the logic circuit can be prevented. Further, the excessive amount of current which flows in the logic circuit can be reduced through the reduction of off-state current of the thin film transistor, resulting in low power consumption of the logic circuit.Type: GrantFiled: November 9, 2015Date of Patent: November 26, 2019Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.Inventors: Shunpei Yamazaki, Jun Koyama, Masashi Tsubuku, Kosei Noda
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Publication number: 20190355592Abstract: An object is to provide a display device with excellent display characteristics, where a pixel circuit and a driver circuit provided over one substrate are formed using transistors which have different structures corresponding to characteristics of the respective circuits. The driver circuit portion includes a driver circuit transistor in which a gate electrode layer, a source electrode layer, and a drain electrode layer are formed using a metal film, and a channel layer is formed using an oxide semiconductor. The pixel portion includes a pixel transistor in which a gate electrode layer, a source electrode layer, and a drain electrode layer are formed using an oxide conductor, and a semiconductor layer is formed using an oxide semiconductor. The pixel transistor is formed using a light-transmitting material, and thus, a display device with higher aperture ratio can be manufactured.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 30, 2019Publication date: November 21, 2019Inventors: Shunpei YAMAZAKI, Junichiro SAKATA, Masashi TSUBUKU, Kengo AKIMOTO, Miyuki HOSOBA, Masayuki SAKAKURA, Yoshiaki OIKAWA
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Patent number: 10468536Abstract: A semiconductor device includes a gate electrode, a gate insulating film which includes oxidized material containing silicon and covers the gate electrode, an oxide semiconductor film provided to be in contact with the gate insulating film and overlap with at least the gate electrode, and a source electrode and a drain electrode electrically connected to the oxide semiconductor film. In the oxide semiconductor film, a first region which is provided to be in contact with the gate insulating film and have a thickness less than or equal to 5 nm has a silicon concentration lower than or equal to 1.0 at. %, and a region in the oxide semiconductor film other than the first region has lower silicon concentration than the first region. At least the first region includes a crystal portion.Type: GrantFiled: April 11, 2019Date of Patent: November 5, 2019Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.Inventors: Tatsuya Honda, Masashi Tsubuku, Yusuke Nonaka, Takashi Shimazu, Shunpei Yamazaki
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Patent number: 10468506Abstract: The on-state characteristics of a transistor are improved and thus, a semiconductor device capable of high-speed response and high-speed operation is provided. A highly reliable semiconductor device showing stable electric characteristics is made. The semiconductor device includes a transistor including a first oxide layer; an oxide semiconductor layer over the first oxide layer; a source electrode layer and a drain electrode layer in contact with the oxide semiconductor layer; a second oxide layer over the oxide semiconductor layer; a gate insulating layer over the second oxide layer; and a gate electrode layer over the gate insulating layer. An end portion of the second oxide layer and an end portion of the gate insulating layer overlap with the source electrode layer and the drain electrode layer.Type: GrantFiled: November 19, 2018Date of Patent: November 5, 2019Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.Inventors: Shunpei Yamazaki, Hideomi Suzawa, Shinya Sasagawa, Motomu Kurata, Masashi Tsubuku
