Abstract:
A piezoelectric thin film resonator which comprises a first electrode, a second electrode, and a piezoelectric film which is interposed between the first electrode and the second electrode, and formed of an epitaxial ferroelectric thin film containing barium titanate, a spontaneous polarization of the epitaxial ferroelectric thin film being uniaxially orientated in a direction normal to a film surface.
Abstract:
A semiconductor integrated memory device comprises a plurality of memory cell blocks, which are formed in the form of a matrix and each of which comprises: a memory cell chain including a plurality of units, each comprising a ferroelectric memory capacitor and a control transistor connected in parallel thereto; a reference capacitor of a unit comprising a reference capacitor and a control transistor connected in parallel thereto; a read transistor having a gate electrode connected to a connection point between the memory cell chain and the reference cell; and a control transistor for adjusting potentials of storage node which is a connection point of the first electrode of the memory capacitor, the third electrode of the reference capacitor and the read transistor. With this construction, the semiconductor integrated memory device is able to be easily produced, to stably retain a ferroelectric polarization and to scale down.
Abstract:
A nonvolatile semiconductor memory device has a ferroelectric cell and a paraelectric cell. The ferroelectric cell includes a first thin-film capacitor which has a first lower electrode formed on a substrate, a first dielectric film grown on the first lower electrode and a first upper electrode formed on the first dielectric film, and a first switching transistor connected to the first thin-film capacitor. The paraelectric cell includes a second thin-film capacitor which has a second lower electrode, a second dielectric film grown on the second lower electrode and a second upper electrode formed on the second dielectric film, and a second switching transistor connected to the second thin-film capacitor. The first lower electrode is provided such that the first dielectric film has ferroelectricities, while the second lower electrode is provided such that the second dielectric film has paraelectricities.
Abstract:
A semiconductor memory device comprising a silicon substrate, a plurality of switching transistors formed on the silicon substrate, an insulating layer having an opening and formed on a surface portion of the silicon substrate where the plurality of switching transistors formed, and a plurality of capacitors for accumulating electric charge formed on the insulating layer and connected respectively to the switching transistors via a conductive film buried in the opening of insulating layer, wherein each of the capacitors for accumulating electric charge is provided with an underlying crystal layer formed on the insulating layer and with a dielectric film consisting essentially of a ferroelectric material and epitaxially or orientationaly grown on the underlying crystal layer, and the switching transistors and the capacitors for accumulating electric charge connected to each other constitute a plurality of memory cells arranged in a two-dimensional pattern.
Abstract:
A semiconductor memory device having a semiconductor substrate, an insulating layer provided on the substrate, and a memory cell. The memory cell has a switching transistor provided on the substrate and a charge storage element in a trench made in the insulating layer. The charge storage element has a bottom electrode, a dielectric layer and a top electrode deposited one on another in the order mentioned.
Abstract:
A non-volatile semiconductor memory device, includes a memory cell having a capacitor formed by stacking a semiconductor layer and a ferroelectric layer between a pair of electrodes, the semiconductor layer and the ferroelectric layer forming a semiconductor-ferroelectric junction, a writing circuit in which a voltage higher than a coercive electric field of the ferroelectric material is applied to the capacitor of the memory cell to align a polarization direction of the ferroelectric layer in a predetermined direction so as to set a capacitance of the capacitor at a predetermined value, thereby writing data corresponding to the predetermined value of the capacitance, and a reading circuit in which a voltage less than the coercive electric field of the ferroelectric layer is applied to the capacitor of the memory cell in which the data is written, thereby reading the data.
Abstract:
A semiconductor memory device comprises a ferroelectric capacitor, a voltage output circuit for outputting a first voltage for reversely polarizing the ferroelectric capacitor and a second voltage by which the polarization of the ferroelectric capacitor is not reversed, regardless of data stored in the ferroelectric capacitor, a first reference capacitor having a such a capacitance as to accumulate less charge than charge which the ferroelectric capacitor accumulates, when the second voltage is applied to the ferroelectric capacitor, a second reference capacitor having such a capacitance that as to accumulate greater charge than the charge which the ferroelectric capacitor accumulates while the ferroelectric capacitor is forwardly polarized, when the first voltage is applied to the ferroelectric capacitor, thus reversely polarizing the ferroelectric capacitor, a sense amplifier connected to the ferroelectric capacitor and the first or second reference capacitor, a reference-capacitor selecting circuit for connecting the first reference capacitor to the sense amplifier when the voltage output circuit outputs the second voltage, and connecting the second reference capacitor to the sense amplifier while the voltage output circuit outputs the first voltage, and a circuit for determining data from the presence or absence of an electric charge in the ferroelectric capacitors while the memory is set in volatile mode, and for determining data from the direction in which the ferroelectric capacitor is polarized, while the memory is set in nonvolatile mode.
Abstract translation:半导体存储器件包括铁电电容器,用于输出用于使强电介质电容器反向极化的第一电压的电压输出电路和强电介质电容器的极化不反转的第二电压,而与铁电电容器中存储的数据无关 第一参考电容器具有这样的电容,即当第二电压被施加到铁电电容器时,积累比铁电电容器累积的电荷少的电荷,第二参考电容器具有这样的电容,以便积累比电荷更大的电荷 当铁电电容器向前偏振时,铁电电容器累积,当第一电压施加到铁电电容器时,从而使铁电电容器反向极化,连接到铁电电容器和第一或第二参考电容器的读出放大器,参考电容器 s 选择电路,用于当电压输出电路输出第二电压时将第一参考电容器连接到读出放大器,并且在电压输出电路输出第一电压时将第二参考电容器连接到读出放大器;以及电路,用于从 当存储器被设置为易失性模式时,铁电电容器中存在或不存在电荷,并且用于从存储器设置为非易失性模式时从铁电电容器被极化的方向确定数据。
Abstract:
An ultrasonic imaging apparatus includes an ultrasonic transducer for outputting an ultrasonic beam and converting the echo of the ultrasonic beam into an echo signal, a transmitter section for supplying a drive signal to the ultrasonic transducer, a receiver section for receiving the echo signal output from the ultrasonic transducer and converting the echo signal into an image signal, and a coaxial cable for coupling the ultrasonic transducer to the transmitter and receiver sections. The ultrasonic transducer is constituted by a two-layer ultrasonic transducer having an impedance smaller than an impedance of the coaxial cable.
Abstract:
A semiconductor device has a semiconductor substrate, a first insulating film formed on a surface of the semiconductor substrate, a first recess formed in the first insulating film, a first barrier film formed on an inner surface of the first insulating film except a top peripheral region of the first trench, a first conductive film formed in the first trench, and a covering film formed on an upper surface and a top peripheral region of the first conductive film and an upper surface of the first barrier film. The first conductive film includes copper.
Abstract:
According to an embodiment, the present invention provides a semiconductor device that is easily integrated with other electronic circuits and functions as an oscillator with high frequency accuracy. The semiconductor device includes: a semiconductor substrate; an element region; an element isolation region that surrounds the element region; a field effect transistor including a gate electrode that is formed on the element region, source and drain regions, and a channel region that is interposed between the source region and the drain region; gate, source, and drain terminals that are used to apply a voltage to the gate electrode, the source region, and the drain region, respectively; and an output terminal that is electrically connected to the channel region. When the threshold voltage of the field effect transistor is Vth, a gate voltage Vgs applied between the source terminal and the gate terminal and a drain voltage Vds applied between the source terminal and the drain terminal satisfy the following relationship: Vth