Power fet with fail-open safety feature

A metal oxide semiconductor field-effect transistor device comprising:

• a metal oxide semiconductor field-effect transistor including –
• a volume of semiconductor material,
• a source located at a first end of the volume of semiconductor material and through which charge carriers enter,
• a drain located spaced apart from the source and through which the charge carriers exit,
• a channel located between the source and the drain and through which the charge carriers move between the source and the drain,
• a gate located at the first end of the volume of semiconductor material used in controlling movement of the charge carriers through the channel, and
• a ferroic bridge electrically coupled with the source and the gate,
• the ferroic bridge including a ferroic material that is in an electrically non-conducting state below a threshold temperature and in an electrically conducting state at and above the threshold temperature, such that when the ferroic bridge reaches the threshold temperature the ferroic material switches to the electrically conducting state to thereby electrically connect the source and the gate and restrict the charge carriers from moving and an electrical current from flowing between the source and the drain;
• and
• a reset terminal electrically connected to the ferroic bridge and configured to apply a reset signal that switches the ferroic bridge from the electrically conductive state to the electrically non-conductive state to thereby permit the charge carriers to move and the electrical current to flow between the source and the drain.