Manual of U.S. Patent Classification
as of June 30, 2000

Class
257
ACTIVE SOLID-STATE DEVICES (E.G., TRANSISTORS, SOLID-STATE DIODES)

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Subclass		Title
ClassTitle		===> ACTIVE SOLID-STATE DEVICES (E.G., TRANSISTORS, SOLID-STATE DIODES)
1		BULK EFFECT DEVICE
2		. Bulk effect switching in amorphous material
3		. . With means to localize region of conduction (e.g., "pore" structure)
4		. . With specified electrode composition or configuration
5		. . In array
6		. Intervalley transfer (e.g., Gunn effect)
7		. . In monolithic integrated circuit
8		. . Three or more terminal device
9		THIN ACTIVE PHYSICAL LAYER WHICH IS (1) AN ACTIVE POTENTIAL WELL LAYER THIN ENOUGH TO ESTABLISH DISCRETE QUANTUM ENERGY LEVELS OR (2) AN ACTIVE BARRIER LAYER THIN ENOUGH TO PERMIT QUANTUM MECHANICAL TUNNELING OR (3) AN ACTIVE LAYER THIN ENOUGH TO PERMIT CARRIER TRANSMISSION WITH SUBSTANTIALLY NO SCATTERING (E.G., SUPERLATTICE, QUANTUM WELL, OR BALLISTIC TRANSPORT DEVICE)
10		. Low workfunction layer for electron emission, e.g., photocathode electron emissive layer
11		. . Combined with a heterojunction involving a III-V compound
12		. Heterojunction
13		. . Incoherent light emitter
14		. . Quantum well
15		. . . Superlattice
16		. . . . Of amorphous semiconductor material
17		. . . . With particular barrier dimension
18		. . . . Strained layer superlattice
19		. . . . . Si Ge
20		. . . . Field effect device
21		. . . . Light responsive structure
22		. . . . With specified semiconductor materials
23		. . . Current flow across well
24		. . . Field effect device
25		. . . Employing resonant tunneling
26		. . Ballistic transport device
27		. . . Field effect transistor
28		. Non-heterojunction superlattice (e.g., doping superlattice or alternating metal and insulator layers)
29		. Ballistic transport device (e.g., hot electron transistor)
30		. Tunneling through region of reduced conductivity
31		. . Josephson
32		. . . Particular electrode material
33		. . . . High temperature (i.e., >30 Kelvin)
34		. . . Weak link (e.g., narrowed portion of superconductive line)
35		. . . Particular barrier material
36		. . . With additional electrode to control conductive state of Josephson junction
37		. . At least one electrode layer of semiconductor material
38		. . . Three or more electrode device
39		. . Three or more electrode device
40		ORGANIC SEMICONDUCTOR MATERIAL
41		POINT CONTACT DEVICE
42		SEMICONDUCTOR IS SELENIUM OR TELLURIUM IN ELEMENTAL FORM
43		SEMICONDUCTOR IS AN OXIDE OF A METAL (E.G., CuO, ZnO) OR COPPER SULFIDE
44		WITH METAL CONTACT ALLOYED TO ELEMENTAL SEMICONDUCTOR TYPE PN JUNCTION IN NONREGENERATIVE STRUCTURE
45		. Elongated alloyed region (e.g., thermal gradient zone melting, TGZM)
46		. In pn junction tunnel diode (Esaki diode)
47		. In bipolar transistor structure
48		TEST OR CALIBRATION STRUCTURE
49		NON-SINGLE CRYSTAL, OR RECRYSTALLIZED, SEMICONDUCTOR MATERIAL FORMS PART OF ACTIVE JUNCTION (INCLUDING FIELD-INDUCED ACTIVE JUNCTION)
50		. Non-single crystal, or recrystallized, active junction adapted to be electrically shorted (e.g., "anti-fuse" element)
51		. Non-single crystal, or recrystallized, material forms active junction with single crystal material (e.g., monocrystal to polycrystal pn junction or heterojunction)
52		. Amorphous semiconductor material
53		. . Responsive to nonelectrical external signals (e.g., light)
54		. . . With Schottky barrier to amorphous material
55		. . . Amorphous semiconductor is alloy or contains material to change band gap (e.g., Si Ge , SiN )
56		. . . With impurity other than hydrogen to passivate dangling bonds (e.g., halide)
57		. . Field effect device in amorphous semiconductor material
58		. . . With impurity other than hydrogen to passivate dangling bonds (e.g., halide)
59		. . . In array having structure for use as imager or display, or with transparent electrode
60		. . . With field electrode under or on a side edge of amorphous semiconductor material (e.g., vertical current path)
61		. . . With heavily doped regions contacting amorphous semiconductor material (e.g., heavily doped source and drain)
62		. . With impurity other than hydrogen to passivate dangling bonds (e.g., halide)
63		. . Amorphous semiconductor is alloy or contains material to change band gap (e.g., SixGe1-x, SiNy)
64		. Non-single crystal, or recrystallized, material with specified crystal structure (e.g., specified crystal size or orientation)
65		. Non-single crystal, or recrystallized, material containing non-dopant additive, or alloy of semiconductor materials (e.g., GexSi1-x, polycrystalline silicon with dangling bond modifier)
66		. Field effect device in non-single crystal, or recrystallized, semiconductor material
67		. . In combination with device formed in single crystal semiconductor material (e.g., stacked FETs)
68		. . . Capacitor element in single crystal semiconductor (e.g., DRAM)
69		. . . Field effect transistor in single crystal material, complememtary to that in non-single crystal, or recrystallized, material (e.g., CMOS)
70		. . . Recrystallized semiconductor material
71		. . In combination with capacitor element (e.g., DRAM)
72		. . In array having structure for use as imager or display, or with transparent electrode
73		. Schottky barrier to polycrystalline semiconductor material
74		. Plural recrystallized semiconductor layers (e.g., "3-dimensional integrated circuit")
75		. Recrystallized semiconductor material
76		SPECIFIED WIDE BAND GAP (> 1.5eV) SEMICONDUCTOR MATERIAL OTHER THAN GaAsP OR GaAlAs
77		. Diamond or Silicon Carbide
78		. II-IV compound
79		INCOHERENT LIGHT EMITTER STRUCTURE
80		. In combination with or also constituting light responsive device
81		. . With specific housing or contact structure
82		. . . Discrete light emitting and light responsive devices
83		. . Light coupled transistor structure
84		. . Combined in integrated structure
85		. . . With heterojunction
86		. Active layer of indirect band gap semiconductor
87		. . With means to facilitate electron-hole recombination (e.g., isoelectronic traps such as nitrogen in GaP)
88		. Plural light emitting devices (e.g., matrix, 7-segment array)
89		. . Multi-color emission
90		. . . With heterojunction
91		. . With shaped contacts or opaque masking
92		. . Alphanumeric segmented array
93		. . With electrical isolation means in integrated circuit structure
94		. With heterojunction
95		. . With contoured external surface (e.g., dome shape to facilitate light emission)
96		. . Plural heterojunctions in same device
97		. . . More than two heterojunctions in same device
98		. With reflector, opaque mask, or optical element (e.g., lens, optical fiber, index of refraction matching layer, luminescent material layer, filter) integral with device or device enclosure or package
99		. With housing or contact structure
100		. Encapsulated
101		. With particular dopant concentration or concentration profile (e.g., graded junction)
102		. With particular dopant material (e.g., Zinc as dopant in GaAs)
103		. With particular semiconductor material
104		TUNNELING PN JUNCTION (E.G., ESAKI DIODE) DEVICE
105		. In three or more terminal device
106		. Reverse bias tunneling structure (e.g., "backward" diode, true Zener diode)
107		REGENERATIVE TYPE SWITCHING DEVICE (E.G., SCR, COMFET, THYRISTOR)
108		. Controlled by nonelectrical, nonoptical external signal (e.g., magnetic field, pressure, thermal)
109		. Having only two terminals and no control electrode (gate) (e.g., Shockley diode)
110		. . More than four semiconductor layers of alternating conductivity types (e.g., pnpnpn structure, 5 layer bidirectional diacs, etc.)
111		. . Triggered by VBO overvoltage means
112		. . With highly-doped breakdown diode trigger
113		. With light activation
114		. . With separate light dector integrated on chip with regenerative switching device
115		. . With electrical trigger signal amplification means (e.g., amplified gate, "pilot thyristor", etc.)
116		. . With light conductor means (e.g., light fiber or light pipe) integral with device or device enclosure or package
117		. . . In groove or with thinned semiconductor portion
118		. . With groove or thinned light sensitive portion
119		. Bidirectional rectifier with control electrode (gate) (e.g., Triac)
120		. . Six or more semiconductor layers of alternating conductivity types (e.g., npnpnpn structure)
121		. . With diode or transistor in reverse path
122		. . Lateral
123		. . With trigger signal amplification (e.g., amplified gate)
124		. . Combined with field effect transistor structure
125		. . . Controllable emitter shunting
126		. . With means to separate a device into sections having different conductive polarity
127		. . . Guard ring or groove
128		. . Having overlapping sections of different conductive polarity
129		. . With means to increase reverse breakdown voltage
130		. . Switching speed enhancement means
131		. . . Recombination centers or deep level dopants
132		. Five or more layer unidirectional structure
133		. Combined with field effect transistor
134		. . J-FET (junction field effect transistor)
135		. . . Vertical (i.e., where the source is located above the drain or vice versa)
136		. . . . Enhancement mode (e.g., so-called SITs)
137		. . Having controllable emitter shunt
138		. . . Having gate turn off (GTO) feature
139		. . With extended latchup current level (e.g., COMFET device)
140		. . . Combined with other solid state active device in integrated structure
141		. . . Lateral structure, i.e., current flow parallel to main device surface
142		. . . Having impurity doping for gain reduction
143		. . . Having anode shunt means
144		. . . Cathode emitter or cathode electrode feature
145		. . . Low impedance channel contact extends below surface
146		. Combined with other solid state active device in integrated structure
147		. With extended latchup current level (e.g., gate turn off "GTO" device)
148		. . Having impurity doping for gain reduction
149		. . Having anode shunt means
150		. . With specified housing or external terminal
151		. . . External gate terminal structure or composition
152		. . Cathode emitter or cathode electrode feature
153		. . Gate region or electrode feature
154		. With resistive region connecting separate sections of device
155		. With switching speed enhancement means (e.g., Schottky contact)
156		. . Having deep level dopants or recombination centers
157		. With integrated trigger signal amplification means (e.g., amplified gate, "pilot thyristor", etc.)
158		. . Three or more amplification stages
159		. . Transistor as amplifier
160		. . With distributed amplified current
161		. . With a turn-off diode
162		. Lateral structure
163		. Emitter region feature
164		. . Multi-emitter region (e.g., emitter geometry or emitter ballast resistor)
165		. . . Laterally symmetric regions
166		. . . Radially symmetric regions
167		. Having at least four external electrodes
168		. With means to increase breakdown voltage
169		. . High resistivity base layer
170		. . Surface feature (e.g., guard ring, groove, mesa)
171		. . . Edge feature (e.g., beveled edge)
172		. With means to lower "ON" voltage drop
173		. Device protection (e.g., from overvoltage)
174		. . Rate of rise of current (e.g., dI/dt)
175		. With means to control triggering (e.g., gate electrode configuration, zener diode firing, dV/dt control, transient control by ferrite bead, etc.)
176		. . Located in an emitter-gate region
177		. With housing or external electrode
178		. . With means to avoid stress between electrode and active device (e.g., thermal expansion matching of electrode to semiconductor)
179		. . . With malleable electrode (e.g., silver electrode layer)
180		. . Stud mount
181		. . With large area flexible electrodes in press contact with opposite sides of active semiconductor chip and surrounded by an insulating element (e.g., ring)
182		. . . With lead feedthrough means on side of housing
183		HETEROJUNCTION DEVICE
183.1		. Charge transfer device
184		. Light responsive structure
185		. . Staircase (including graded composition) device
186		. . Avalanche photodetection structure
187		. . Having transistor structure
188		. . Having narrow energy band gap (<<1eV) layer (e.g., PbSnTe, HgCdTe, etc.)
189		. . . Layer is a group III-V semiconductor compound
190		. With lattice constant mismatch (e.g., with buffer layer to accomodate mismatch)
191		. Having graded composition
192		. Field effect transistor
194		. . Doping on side of heterojunction with lower carrier affinity (e.g., high electron mobility transistor (HEMT)
195		. . . Combined with diverse type device
196		. Both semiconductors of the heterojunction are the same conductivity type (i.e., either N or P)
197		. Bipolar transistor
198		. . Wide band gap emitter
199		. Avalanche diode (e.g., so-called "Zener" diode having breakdown voltage greater than 6 volts, including heterojunction IMPATT type microwave diodes)
200		. Heterojunction formed between semiconductor materials which differ in that they belong to different periodic table groups (e.g., Ge (group IV) - GaAs (group III-V) or InP (group III-V) - CdTe (group II-VI))
201		. Between different group IV-VI or II-VI or III-V compounds other than GaAs/GaAlAs
202		GATE ARRAYS
203		. With particular chip input/output means
204		. Having specific type of active device (e.g., CMOS)
205		. . With bipolar transistors or with FETs of only one channel conductivity type (e.g., enhancement-depletion FETs)
206		. . Particular layout of complementary FETs with regard to each other
207		. With particular power supply distribution means
208		. With particular signal path connections
209		. . Programmable signal paths (e.g., with fuse elements, laser programmable, etc.)
210		. . With wiring channel area
211		. . Multi-level metallization
212		CONDUCTIVITY MODULATION DEVICE (E.G., UNIJUNCTION TRANSISTOR, DOUBLE-BASE DIODE, CONDUCTIVITY-MODULATED TRANSISTOR)
213		FIELD EFFECT DEVICE
214		. Charge injection device
215		. Charge transfer device
216		. . Majority signal carrier (e.g., buried or bulk channel, or peristaltic)
217		. . . Having a conductive means in direct contact with channel (e.g., non- insulated gate)
218		. . . High resistivity channel (e.g., accumulation mode) or surface channel (e.g., transfer of signal charge occurs at the surface of the semi-conductor) or minority carriers at input (e.g., surface channel input)
219		. . . Impurity concentration variation
220		. . . . Vertically within channel (e.g., profiled)
221		. . . . Along the length of the channel (e.g., doping variations for transfer directionality)
222		. . . Responsive to non-electrical external signal (e.g., imager)
223		. . . . Having structure to improve output signal (e.g., antiblooming drain)
224		. . . Channel confinement
225		. . Non-electrical input responsive (e.g., light responsive imager, input programmed by size of storage sites for use as a read-only memory, etc.)
226		. . . Sensor element and charge transfer device are of different materials or on different substrates (e.g., "hybrid")
227		. . . With specified dopant (e.g., photoionizable, "extrinsic" detectors for infrared)
228		. . . Light responsive, back illuminated
229		. . . Having structure to improve output signal (e.g., exposure control structure)
230		. . . . With blooming suppression structure
231		. . . 2-dimensional area architecture
232		. . . . Having alternating strips of sensor structures and register structures (e.g., interline imager)
233		. . . . Sensors not overlaid by electrode (e.g., photodiodes)
234		. . . Single strip of sensors (e.g., linear imager)
235		. . Electrical input
236		. . . Signal applied to field effect electrode
237		. . . . Charge-presetting/linear input type (e.g., fill and spill)
238		. . . Input signal responsive to signal charge in charge transfer device (e.g., regeneration or feedback)
239		. . Signal charge detection type (e.g., floating diffusion or floating gate non-destructive output)
240		. . Changing width or direction of channel (e.g., meandering channel)
241		. . Multiple channels (e.g., converging or diverging or parallel channels)
242		. . Vertical charge transfer
243		. . Channel confinement
244		. . Comprising a groove
245		. . Structure for applying electric field into device (e.g., resistive electrode, acoustic traveling wave in channel)
246		. . . Phase structure (e.g., doping variations to provide asymmetry for 2-phase operation; more than four phases or "electrode per bit")
247		. . . . Uniphase or virtual phase structure
248		. . . . 2-phase
249		. . . Electrode structures or materials
250		. . . . Plural gate levels
251		. . Substantially incomplete signal charge transfer (e.g., bucket brigade)
252		. Responsive to non-optical, non-electrical signal
253		. . Chemical (e.g., ISFET, CHEMFET)
254		. . Physical deformation (e.g., strain sensor, acoustic wave detector)
255		. With current flow along specified crystal axis (e.g., axis of maximum carrier mobility)
256		. Junction field effect transistor (unipolar transistor)
257		. . Light responsive or combined with light responsive device
258		. . . In imaging array
259		. . Elongated active region acts as transmission line or distributed active element (e.g., "transmission line" field effect transistor)
260		. . Same channel controlled by both junction and insulated gate electrodes, or by both Schottky barrier and pn junction gates (e.g., "taper isolated" memory cell)
261		. . Junction gate region free of direct electrical connection (e.g., floating junction gate memory cell structure)
262		. . Combined with insulated gate field effect transistor (IGFET)
263		. . Vertical controlled current path
264		. . . Enhancement mode or with high resistivity channel (e.g., doping of 1015cm-3 or less)
265		. . . In integrated circuit
266		. . . With multiple parallel current paths (e.g., grid gate)
267		. . . . With Schottky barrier gate
268		. . Enhancement mode
269		. . . With means to adjust barrier height (e.g., doping profile)
270		. . Plural, separately connected, gates control same channel region
271		. . Load element or constant current source (e.g., with source to gate connection)
272		. . Junction field effect transistor in integrated circuit
273		. . . With bipolar device
274		. . . Complementary junction field effect transistors
275		. . . Microwave integrated circuit (e.g., microstrip type)
276		. . . . With contact or heat sink extending through hole in semiconductor substrate, or with electrode suspended over substrate (e.g., air bridge)
277		. . . . With capacitive or inductive elements
278		. . . With devices vertically spaced in different layers of semiconductor material (e.g., "3-dimensional" integrated circuit)
279		. . Pn junction gate in compound semiconductor material (e.g., GaAs)
280		. . With Schottky gate
281		. . . Schottky gate to silicon semiconductor
282		. . . Gate closely aligned to source region
283		. . . . With groove or overhang for alignment
284		. . . Schottky gate in groove
285		. . With profiled channel dopant concentration or profiled gate region dopant concentration (e.g., maximum dopant concentration below surface)
286		. . With non-uniform channel thickness or width
287		. . With multiple channels or chanel segments connected in parallel, or with channel much wider than length between source and drain (e.g., power JFET)
288		. Having insulated electrode (e.g., MOSFET, MOS diode)
289		. . Significant semiconductor chemical compound in bulk crystal (e.g., GaAs)
290		. . Light responsive or combined with light responsive device
291		. . . Imaging array
292		. . . . Photodiodes accessed by FETs
293		. . . . Photoresistors accessed by FETs, or photodetectors separate from FET chip
294		. . . . With shield, filter, or lens
295		. . With ferroelectric material layer
296		. . Insulated gate capacitor or insulated gate transistor combined with capacitor (e.g., dynamic memory cell)
297		. . . With means for preventing charge leakage due to minority carrier generation (e.g., alpha generated soft error protection or "dark current" leakage protection)
298		. . . Capacitor for signal storage in combination with non-volatile storage means
299		. . . Structure configured for voltage converter (e.g., charge pump, substrate bias generator)
300		. . . Capacitor coupled to, or forms gate of, insulated gate field effect transistor (e.g., nondestructive readout dynamic memory cell structure)
301		. . . Capacitor in trench
302		. . . . Vertical transistor
303		. . . . Stacked capacitor
304		. . . . Storage node isolated by dielectric from semiconductor substrate
305		. . . . With means to insulate adjacent storage nodes (e.g., channel stops or field oxide)
306		. . . Stacked capacitor
307		. . . . Parallel interleaved capacitor electrode pairs (e.g., interdigitized)
308		. . . . . With capacitor electrodes connection portion located centrally thereof (e.g., fin electrodes with central post)
309		. . . . With increased effective electrode surface area (e.g., tortuous path, corrugated, or textured electrodes)
310		. . . With high dielectric constant insulator (e.g., Ta2Os)
311		. . . Storage node isolated by dielectric from semiconductor substrate
312		. . . Voltage variable capacitor (i.e., capacitance varies with applied voltage)
313		. . . Inversion layer capacitor
314		. . Variable threshold (e.g., floating gate memory device)
315		. . . With floating gate electrode
316