Patent attributes
The invention relates to a semiconductor circuit (20) having an electrically programmable switching element (10), an “antifuse”, which includes a substrate electrode (2), produced in a substrate (1) which can be electrically biased with a substrate potential (Vo), and an opposing electrode (5) which is isolated from the substrate electrode (2) by an insulating layer (8), where the substrate electrode (2) includes at least one highly doped substrate region (3), and where the opposing electrode (5) can be connected to an external first electrical potential (V+) which can be provided outside of the semiconductor circuit (20). In line with the invention, the substrate electrode (2) can be connected to a second electrical potential (V−), which is provided inside the circuit and which, together with the external first potential (V+), produces a higher programming voltage (V) than the external first potential (V−) together with the substrate potential (Vo). In addition, the substrate electrode (2) is shielded from the substrate potential (Vo) by a current barrier layer (7). This allows the second potential to be lowered below the substrate potential or to be raised above it; the resulting increased programming voltage does not endanger other circuit regions.
