US 7,457,087 B2
Electrostatic discharge protective circuit and semiconductor integrated circuit using the same
Koichi Sato, Yokohama (Japan)
Assigned to Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba, (Japan)
Filed on Jul. 11, 2007, as Appl. No. 11/776,528.
Application 11/776528 is a division of application No. 11/094091, filed on Mar. 29, 2005, granted, now 7,256,976.
Claims priority of application No. 2004-155051 (JP), filed on May 25, 2004.
Prior Publication US 2008/0013232 A1, Jan. 17, 2008
Int. Cl. H02H 9/00 (2006.01)
U.S. Cl. 361—56 9 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A semiconductor integrated circuit device comprising:
an internal circuit to be protected from an ESD voltage connected between a first power source terminal to which a predetermined voltage is applied and a second power source terminal to be energized;
a first MOS device which is logically controlled by the internal circuit and which configures a buffer circuit in which one of a drain and a source of the first MOS device is connected to an output terminal;
an ESD protective circuit having a discharge path connected between the output terminal and the second power source terminal and having a trigger terminal; and
a trigger circuit connected between the other of the drain and the source of the first MOS device and the trigger terminal of the ESD protective circuit;
wherein the first MOS device functions as the buffer circuit at a time of normal operation state when an ESD voltage is not applied, and when the ESD voltage is applied, the first MOS device makes a trigger current flow from the first MOS device to the ESD protective circuit via the trigger circuit; and
wherein a positive power source voltage is applied to the first power source terminal, the first MOS device is a first NMOS device, the buffer circuit includes a first PMOS device connected between the first power source terminal and the output terminal, and a second NMOS device which is connected between the output terminal and the second power source terminal, the trigger circuit includes a second PMOS device in which a source and a drain are connected between the source of the first NMOS device and the trigger terminal, and a gate connected to the first power source terminal, and the first NMOS device functions as a part of the buffer circuit at the time of normal operation state when an ESD voltage is not applied, and when the ESD voltage is applied, functions to generate a trigger current which flows from the first NMOS device to the ESD protective circuit via the second PMOS device.