Vertical hall device with highly conductive opposite face node for electrically connecting first and second hall effect regions

A sensing arrangement comprising a vertical Hall device and a further vertical Hall device, wherein the vertical Hall device and the further vertical Hall device comprise, respectively;

• a first Hall effect region and a second Hall effect region different from the first Hall effect region, both Hall effect regions in a common semiconductor body, the first and second Hall effect regions having a main face and an opposite face, respectively;
• a highly conductive opposite face node in ohmic contact to the opposite faces of the first Hall effect region and of the second Hall effect region in the semiconductor body;
• a first pair of contacts in or at the main face of the first Hall effect region;
• and
• a second pair of contacts in or at the main face of the second Hall effect region, wherein a convex circumscribing contour of the second pair of contacts is disjoint from a convex circumscribing contour of the first pair of contacts;
• wherein the highly conductive opposite face nodes of the vertical Hall device and the further vertical Hall device are not in ohmic contact with each other.

A method for sensing a magnetic field parallel to a face of a semiconductor body, the method comprising:

• connecting an electrical energy source to a vertical Hall device causing an electric current therein, the vertical Hall device comprising a first Hall effect region with a main face and an opposite face within a semiconductor body, a second Hall effect region with a main face and an opposite face within the semiconductor body, and a highly conductive opposite face node in ohmic contact to the opposite faces of both the first and second Hall effect regions,
• wherein a first pole of the electrical energy source is connected to a first contact belonging to a first pair of contacts in or at the main face of the first Hall effect region, and wherein a second pole of the electrical energy source is connected to a second contact belonging to a second pair of contacts in or at the main face of the second Hall effect region so that a significant portion of the electric current flows from the first contact via the first Hall effect region, through the highly conductive node, and the second Hall effect region to the second contact, or in opposite direction;
• and
• sensing at least one sense signal at a third contact belonging to one of the first pair of contacts and the second pair of contacts.

A method for sensing a magnetic field parallel to a face of a semiconductor body using a sensing arrangement comprising two vertical Hall devices, each vertical Hall device comprising:

• a first Hall effect region and a second Hall effect region in the semiconductor body, the first Hall effect regions having a main face and an opposite face and the second Hall effect region having a main face and an opposite face;
• a highly conductive opposite face node in ohmic contact to the opposite face of the first Hall effect region and the opposite face of the second Hall effect region in the semiconductor body;
• a first pair of contacts in or at the main face of the first Hall effect region, wherein a distance of the contacts of the first pair is smaller than twice a depth of the second Hall effect region;
• a second pair of contacts in or at the main face of the second Hall effect region, wherein a distance of the contacts of the second pair is smaller than twice a depth of the second Hall effect region;
• whereby the highly conductive opposite face nodes of both vertical Hall devices are not in ohmic contact with each other;
• wherein the method comprises three, six, nine, or twelve clock phases per spinning current cycles of a spinning current scheme, wherein each clock phase comprises:
• connecting a clock phase-specific first contact of each vertical Hall device to a reference potential;
• applying a voltage relative to the reference potential or injecting an electric current at a clock phase-specific second contact of each vertical Hall device;
• sensing signals at the two remaining contacts per vertical Hall device, wherein of these remaining contacts those contacts whose signals increase with an applied magnetic field for a given clock phase are called positive sense contacts for said clock phase, and those contacts whose signals decrease with the applied magnetic field for said clock phase are called negative sense contacts;
• wherein alter completion of the spinning current cycle a total output signal is derived in such a way that it corresponds to the sum of the signals of positive sense contacts in the various clock phases minus the sum of the signals of negative sense contacts in the various clock phases.

A vertical Hall device comprising:

• a Hall effect region in a semiconductor body, wherein the Hall effect, region has a main face and an opposite face;
• a highly conductive opposite face node in ohmic contact to the opposite face of the Hall effect region in the semiconductor body;
• a pair of contacts in or at the main face of the Hall effect region;
• an opposite face node contact in or at the main face of the Hall effect region, wherein a resistance between the opposite face node contact and the highly conductive opposite, face node is smaller than a resistance between both contacts of the pair of contacts and the highly conductive opposite face node.

A method for sensing a magnetic field parallel to a main face of a semiconductor body by using a vertical Hall device that comprises

• a Hall effect region in the semiconductor body, wherein the Hall effect region has a main face and an opposite face;
• a highly conductive opposite face node in ohmic contact to the opposite face of the Hall effect region in the semiconductor body;
• a pair of contacts in or at the main face of the Hall effect region;
• an opposite face node contact in or at the main face of the Hall effect region, wherein a resistance between the opposite face node contact and the highly conductive opposite face node is smaller than a resistance between any contact of the pair of contacts and the highly conductive opposite face node;
• the method comprising:
• connecting an electrical energy source to the vertical Hall device, wherein a first pole of the electrical energy source is connected to a contact of the pair of contacts, and wherein a second pole of the electrical energy source is connected to the opposite face node contact so that an electric current flows from the contact of the pair via a first portion of the Hall effect region, the highly conductive opposite face node, and a second portion of the Hall effect region, or in opposite direction, to the opposite face node contact;
• and
• sensing a sense signal at a further contact of the pair of contacts.

A vertical Hall device comprising:

• a Hall effect region in a semiconductor body, wherein the Hall effect region comprises a main face, an opposite face, a first section, a second section, and a connecting section between the first section and the second section;
• a highly conductive opposite face node in ohmic contact to both the first and the second section at the opposite face of the Hall effect region and thus providing a highly conductive connection between the first and second sections compared to the connecting section;
• a pair of contacts arranged in or at the main face of the first section of the Hall effect region;
• and
• an opposite face node contact arranged in or at the main face of the second section of the Hall effect region.