Patents by Inventor Shunpei Yamazaki

Shunpei Yamazaki 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).

  • Publication number: 20110181560
    Abstract: A driver circuit portion of a display device has a function in which image signals are written to a selected pixel successively so as to display an image on a screen and a function in which writing operation of an image signal is stopped and a transistor is turned off so as to maintain one image written to the screen when the one image is continuously displayed on the screen. Such functions are achieved by a transistor whose off current per micrometer in channel width is reduced to an extremely low value that is lower than 10 zA/?m at room temperature and lower than 100 zA/?m at 85° C.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 21, 2011
    Publication date: July 28, 2011
    Applicant: SEMICONDUCTOR ENERGY LABORATORY CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Shunpei Yamazaki
  • Publication number: 20110182110
    Abstract: A semiconductor device which stores data by using a transistor whose leakage current between source and drain in an off state is small as a writing transistor. In a matrix including a plurality of memory cells in which a drain of the writing transistor is connected to a gate of a reading transistor and the drain of the writing transistor is connected to one electrode of a capacitor, a gate of the writing transistor is connected to a writing word line; a source of the writing transistor is connected to a writing bit line; and a source and a drain of the reading transistor are connected to a reading bit line and a bias line. In order to reduce the number of wirings, the writing bit line or the bias line is substituted for the reading bit line in another column.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 19, 2011
    Publication date: July 28, 2011
    Applicant: SEMICONDUCTOR ENERGY LABORATORY CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Shunpei Yamazaki, Yasuhiko Takemura
  • Publication number: 20110180811
    Abstract: It is an object to provide a wireless chip which can increase a mechanical strength, and a wireless chip with a high durability. A wireless chip includes a transistor including a field-effect transistor, an antenna including a dielectric layer sandwiched between conductive layers, and a conductive layer connecting the chip and the antenna. Further, a wireless chip includes a transistor including a field-effect transistor, an antenna including a dielectric layer sandwiched between conductive layers, a sensor device, a conductive layer connecting the chip and the antenna, and a conductive layer connecting the chip and the sensor device. Moreover, a wireless chip includes a transistor including a field-effect transistor, an antenna including a dielectric layer sandwiched between conductive layers, a battery, a conductive layer connecting the chip and the antenna, and a conductive layer connecting the chip and the battery.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 7, 2011
    Publication date: July 28, 2011
    Applicant: SEMICONDUCTOR ENERGY LABORATORY CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Yukie SUZUKI, Yasuyuki ARAI, Shunpei YAMAZAKI
  • Publication number: 20110181537
    Abstract: When image data is displayed on the display portion of a conventional mobile telephone, characters cannot be displayed thereon, and thus the image data and the characters cannot be simultaneously displayed. In a portable electronic device according to the present invention, a cover member having a first display device (101) for displaying an image (digital still image or the like) and a second display device (102) having a touch input operational portion (for displaying characters, symbols, or the like) are attached to each other so as to allow opening and closing.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 4, 2011
    Publication date: July 28, 2011
    Inventors: Satoru Okamoto, Shunpei Yamazaki
  • Publication number: 20110181349
    Abstract: The semiconductor device includes a power element which is in an on state when voltage is not applied to a gate, a switching field-effect transistor for applying first voltage to the gate of the power element, and a switching field-effect transistor for applying voltage lower than the first voltage to the gate of the power element. The switching field-effect transistors have small off-state current.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 20, 2011
    Publication date: July 28, 2011
    Applicant: SEMICONDUCTOR ENERGY LABORATORY CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Shunpei Yamazaki, Jun Koyama
  • Publication number: 20110181786
    Abstract: To provide a display device whose display can be recognized even in dark places or under the strong outside light. The display device performs display by controlling the number of gray scales in accordance with the intensity of outside light, which means a display mode can be switched in accordance with the data to be displayed on the display screen. A video signal generation circuit is controlled in each display mode in such a manner that it directly outputs an input video signal with an analog value, outputs a signal with a binary digital value, or outputs a signal with a multivalued digital value. As a result, gray scales displayed in pixels are timely changed. Accordingly, clear images can be displayed while maintaining high visibility in various environments, in the wide range from, for example, dark places or indoors (e.g., under a fluorescent lighting) to outdoors (e.g., under the sunlight).
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 10, 2006
    Publication date: July 28, 2011
    Applicant: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Shunpei Yamazaki, Jun Koyama, Yoshifumi Tanada, Mitsuaki Osame, Hajime Kimura, Ryota Fukumoto, Hiromi Yanai
  • Publication number: 20110180797
    Abstract: It is an object of the present invention to provide a semiconductor device capable of preventing deterioration due to penetration of moisture or oxygen, for example, a light-emitting apparatus having an organic light-emitting device that is formed over a plastic substrate, and a liquid crystal display apparatus using a plastic substrate. According to the present invention, devices formed on a glass substrate or a quartz substrate (a TFT, a light-emitting device having an organic compound, a liquid crystal device, a memory device, a thin-film diode, a pin-junction silicon photoelectric converter, a silicon resistance element, or the like) are separated from the substrate, and transferred to a plastic substrate having high thermal conductivity.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 21, 2011
    Publication date: July 28, 2011
    Applicant: SEMICONDUCTOR ENERGY LABORATORY CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Shunpei Yamazaki, Toru Takayama, Junya Maruyama, Yumiko Ohno
  • Publication number: 20110180794
    Abstract: A display panel for displaying an image is provided with a plurality of pixels arranged in a matrix. Each pixel includes one or more units each including a plurality of subunits. Each subunit includes a transistor in which an oxide semiconductor layer which is provided so as to overlap a gate electrode with a gate insulating layer interposed therebetween, a pixel electrode which drives liquid crystal connected to a source or a drain of the transistor, a counter electrode which is provided so as to face the pixel electrode, and a liquid crystal layer provided between the pixel electrode and the counter electrode. In the display panel, a transistor whose off current is lower than 10 zA/?m at room temperature per micrometer of the channel width and off current of the transistor at 85° C. can be lower than 100 zA/?m per micrometer in the channel width.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 21, 2011
    Publication date: July 28, 2011
    Applicant: SEMICONDUCTOR ENERGY LABORATORY CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Shunpei Yamazaki
  • Publication number: 20110181806
    Abstract: Disclosed is a display device including a transistor showing extremely low off current. In order to reduce the off current, a semiconductor material whose band gap is greater than that of a silicon semiconductor is used for forming a transistor, and the concentration of an impurity which serves as a carrier donor of the semiconductor material is reduced. Specifically, an oxide semiconductor whose band gap is greater than or equal to 2 eV, preferably greater than or equal to 2.5 eV, more preferably greater than or equal to 3 eV is used for a semiconductor layer of a transistor, and the concentration of an impurity which serves as a carrier donor included is reduced. Consequently, the off current of the transistor per micrometer in channel width can be reduced to lower than 10 zA/?m at room temperature and lower than 100 zA/?m at 85° C.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 21, 2011
    Publication date: July 28, 2011
    Applicant: SEMICONDUCTOR ENERGY LABORATORY CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Shunpei Yamazaki
  • Publication number: 20110180796
    Abstract: An object is to provide a semiconductor device including an oxide semiconductor, which maintains favorable characteristics and achieves miniaturization. The semiconductor device includes an oxide semiconductor layer, a source electrode and a drain electrode in contact with the oxide semiconductor layer, a gate electrode overlapping with the oxide semiconductor layer, and a gate insulating layer provided between the oxide semiconductor layer and the gate electrode, in which the source electrode and the drain electrode each include a first conductive layer, and a second conductive layer having a region which extends in a channel length direction from an end portion of the first conductive layer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 18, 2011
    Publication date: July 28, 2011
    Applicant: SEMICONDUCTOR ENERGY LABORATORY CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Shunpei YAMAZAKI, Hiromichi GODO, Hideomi SUZAWA, Shinya SASAGAWA, Motomu KURATA, Mayumi MIKAMI
  • Publication number: 20110180801
    Abstract: The purpose of the invention is to improve reliability of a light emitting apparatus comprising TFTs and organic light emitting elements.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 7, 2011
    Publication date: July 28, 2011
    Applicant: SEMICONDUCTOR ENERGY LABORATORY CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Shunpei YAMAZAKI, Satoshi MURAKAMI, Masayuki SAKAKURA, Toru TAKAYAMA
  • Patent number: 7987498
    Abstract: It is an object to provide a personal data management system which overcomes a problem of data leakage and a nonvolatile memory card applied to the personal data management system. A personal data management system includes a personal data storage medium including a communication control unit which transmits and receives data to/from a terminal, an encoding unit which encodes the received data, and a nonvolatile memory which stores the encoded data; a terminal including a communication control unit which transmits and receives data to/from the personal data storage medium and a server, a display portion which displays the received data, and an input unit; and the server including a communication control unit which transmits and receives data to/from the terminal, a decoding unit which decodes the encoded data, an identification data storage portion, and a unit which compares the decoded data with data in the identification data storage portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 20, 2007
    Date of Patent: July 26, 2011
    Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Yoshifumi Tanada, Shunpei Yamazaki, Yasuyuki Arai, Yoshitaka Moriya
  • Patent number: 7985635
    Abstract: A laser annealing process for recovering crystallinity of a deposited semiconductor film such as of silicon which had undergone morphological damage, said process comprising activating the semiconductor by irradiating a pulsed laser beam operating at a wavelength of 400 nm or less and at a pulse width of 50 nsec or less onto the surface of the film, wherein, said deposited film is coated with a transparent film such as a silicon oxide film at a thickness of from 3 to 300 nm, and the laser beam incident to said coating is applied at an energy density E (mJ/cm2) provided that it satisfies the relation: log10 N??0.02(E?350), where N is the number of shots of the pulsed laser beam.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 30, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 26, 2011
    Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Shunpei Yamazaki, Hongyong Zhang, Hiroaki Ishihara
  • Patent number: 7985677
    Abstract: One of methods of manufacturing a semiconductor device of the present invention is as follows: a first conductive layer is formed, a first insulating layer is formed over the first conductive layer, and a second insulating layer is formed over the first insulating layer; then, a first opening portion is formed in the first insulating layer and the second insulating layer to reach the first conductive layer; a mask layer having low wettability to a composition containing a conductive material is formed over the second insulating layer, and a second opening portion larger than the first opening portion is formed in the second insulating layer; subsequently, the first and second opening portions are filled with the composition containing a conductive material to form a second conductive layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 22, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 26, 2011
    Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Gen Fujii, Shunpei Yamazaki
  • Publication number: 20110175083
    Abstract: A semiconductor device has a non-volatile memory cell including a write transistor which includes an oxide semiconductor and has small leakage current in an off state (off-state current) between a source and a drain, a read transistor including a semiconductor material different from that of the write transistor, and a capacitor. Data is written or to the memory cell by applying a potential to a node where one of a source electrode and drain electrode of the write transistor, one electrode of the capacitor, and a gate electrode of the read transistor are electrically connected to one another so that the predetermined amount of charge is held in the node. The memory window width is changed by 2% or less, before and after 1×109 times of writing.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 11, 2011
    Publication date: July 21, 2011
    Applicant: SEMICONDUCTOR ENERGY LABORATORY CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Yusuke Sekine, Yutaka Shionoiri, Kiyoshi Kato, Shunpei Yamazaki
  • Publication number: 20110176357
    Abstract: It is an object to provide a memory device for which a complex manufacturing process is not necessary and whose power consumption can be suppressed and a signal processing circuit including the memory device. In a memory element including a phase-inversion element by which the phase of an input signal is inverted and the signal is output such as an inverter or a clocked inverter, a capacitor which holds data and a switching element which controls storing and releasing of electric charge in the capacitor are provided. For the switching element, a transistor including an oxide semiconductor in a channel formation region is used. The memory element is applied to a memory device such as a register or a cache memory included in a signal processing circuit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 18, 2011
    Publication date: July 21, 2011
    Applicant: SEMICONDUCTOR ENERGY LABORATORY CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Jun Koyama, Shunpei Yamazaki
  • Publication number: 20110175833
    Abstract: One object is to provide a new electronic device which is configured so that a user can read data regardless of a location, input data by directly touching a keyboard displayed on a screen or indirectly touching the keyboard with a stylus pen or the like, and use the input data. A first transistor electrically connected to a reflective electrode and a photo sensor are included over one substrate. A touch-input button displayed on a first screen region of the display portion is displayed as a still image, and a video signal is output so that a moving image is displayed on a second screen region of the display portion. A video signal processing portion supplying different signals between the case where a still image is displayed on the display portion and the case where a moving image is displayed on the display portion is included.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 14, 2011
    Publication date: July 21, 2011
    Applicant: SEMICONDUCTOR ENERGY LABORATORY CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Yoshiyuki Kurokawa, Takayuki Ikeda, Hikaru Tamura, Shunpei Yamazaki
  • Publication number: 20110176354
    Abstract: An object is to provide a semiconductor device with a novel structure in which stored data can be retained even when power is not supplied, and does not have a limitation on the number of times of writing operations. A semiconductor device includes a source-bit line, a first signal line, a second signal line, a word line, and a memory cell connected between the source-bit lines. The memory cell includes a first transistor, a second transistor, and a capacitor. The second transistor is formed including an oxide semiconductor material. A gate electrode of the first transistor, one of a source and drain electrodes, and one of electrodes of the capacitor are electrically connected to one another. The source-bit line and a source electrode of the first transistor are electrically connected to each other. Another source-bit line adjacent to the above source-bit line and a drain electrode of the first transistor are electrically connected to each other.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 10, 2011
    Publication date: July 21, 2011
    Applicant: SEMICONDUCTOR ENERGY LABORATORY CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Shunpei Yamazaki, Jun Koyama, Kiyoshi Kato
  • Publication number: 20110176263
    Abstract: A portable electronic device that can operate even when electric power supplied through contactless charge by electromagnetic induction is low is provided. The portable electronic device includes a reflective liquid crystal display which includes a transistor including an oxide semiconductor, a power source portion which includes a rechargeable battery capable of charge by contactless charge, and a signal processing portion which includes a nonvolatile semiconductor memory device. In the portable electronic device, electric power stored in the rechargeable battery is used in the reflective liquid crystal display and the signal processing portion.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 13, 2011
    Publication date: July 21, 2011
    Applicant: SEMICONDUCTOR ENERGY LABORATORY CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Shunpei YAMAZAKI, Jun KOYAMA
  • Publication number: 20110176355
    Abstract: A semiconductor device has a non-volatile memory cell including a write transistor which includes an oxide semiconductor and has small leakage current in an off state between a source and a drain, a read transistor including a semiconductor material different from that of the write transistor, and a capacitor. Data is written or rewritten to the memory cell by turning on the write transistor and applying a potential to a node where one of a source electrode and drain electrode of the write transistor, one electrode of the capacitor, and a gate electrode of the read transistor are electrically connected to one another, and then turning off the write transistor so that the predetermined amount of charge is held in the node.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 12, 2011
    Publication date: July 21, 2011
    Applicant: SEMICONDUCTOR ENERGY LABORATORY CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Kazuma Furutani, Yoshinori Ieda, Yuto Yakubo, Kiyoshi Kato, Shunpei Yamazaki