1. A thin film transistor formation method, comprising:
depositing and patterning a gate electrode over a substrate using a first mask;
depositing a gate dielectric layer over the gate electrode;
depositing a semiconductive active layer over the gate dielectric layer, the semiconductive active layer comprising oxygen, nitrogen, and one or more elements selected from the group consisting of zinc, indium, cadmium, gallium, and tin;
depositing an etch stop layer over the semiconductive active layer;
forming a second mask over the etch stop layer;
etching the etch stop layer to form a patterned etch stop layer of a device portion of the thin film transistor and remove the etch stop layer from a gate contact portion of the thin film transistor to expose the semiconductive active layer;
removing the second mask to expose the patterned etch stop layer;
depositing a metal layer over the patterned etch stop layer and the semiconductive active layer;
forming a third mask over the metal layer at the device portion of the thin film transistor;
etching the metal layer to define a source electrode and a drain electrode at the device portion and remove the metal layer from the gate contact portion;
removing the third mask;
etching the semiconductive active layer using the source electrode and the drain electrode as a mask to remove the semiconductive active layer from the gate contact portion and expose the gate dielectric layer in the gate contact portion; and
etching the gate dielectric layer using a fourth mask to expose a gate contact in the gate contact portion.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the metal layer and the semiconductive active layer are etched using a plasma etching process.
3. The method of claim 2, wherein the etching the semiconductive active layer comprises utilizing the source electrode, the drain electrode and the patterned etch stop layer collectively as a mask without depositing and removing a fifth mask.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein the semiconductive active layer is etched using a wet etching process and the metal layer is etched using a plasma etching process.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein the semiconductive active layer and the metal layer are etched using a wet etching process.
6. A thin film transistor formation method, comprising:
depositing and patterning a gate electrode over a substrate using a first mask;
depositing a gate dielectric layer over the gate electrode;
depositing a semiconductive active layer over the gate dielectric layer, the semiconductive active layer comprising oxygen, nitrogen, and one or more elements selected from the group consisting of zinc, indium, cadmium, gallium, and tin;
patterning the semiconductive active layer using a second mask to form an active channel in a device portion of the thin film transistor and remove the semiconductive active layer from a gate contact portion of the thin film transistor and expose the gate dielectric layer in the gate contact portion;
depositing an etch stop layer over the active channel in the device portion and over the gate dielectric layer in the gate contact portion;
etching the etch stop layer using a third mask to form a patterned etch stop layer in the device portion and etch through the etch stop layer and the gate dielectric layer in the gate contact portion to expose a gate contact in the gate contact portion;
depositing a metal layer over the patterned etch stop layer, the semiconductive active layer, and the gate contact portion; and
etching the metal layer with a fourth mask to define a source electrode and a drain electrode at the device portion and form a metal contact at the gate contact portion.
7. The method of claim 6, wherein the metal layer and the semiconductive active layer are etched using a plasma etching process.
8. The method of claim 3, wherein the semiconductive active layer is etched using a wet etching process and the metal layer is etched using a plasma etching process.
9. The method of claim 3, wherein the semiconductive active layer and the metal layer are etched using a wet etching process.
10. A thin film transistor formation method, comprising:
depositing and patterning a gate electrode over a substrate using a first mask;
depositing a gate dielectric layer over the gate electrode;
depositing a semiconductive active layer over the gate dielectric layer, the semiconductive active layer comprising oxygen, nitrogen, and one or more elements selected from the group consisting of zinc, indium, cadmium, gallium, and tin;
depositing an etch stop layer over the semiconductive active layer;
etching the etch stop layer using a second mask to form a patterned etch stop layer of a device portion of the thin film transistor and remove the etch stop layer from a gate contact portion of the thin film transistor to expose the semiconductive active layer;
etching the semiconductive active layer using the patterned etch stop layer as a mask to expose the gate dielectric layer and form an active channel in the device portion;
depositing a passivation layer over the device portion and the gate contact portion;
etching through the passivation layer and the patterned etch stop layer using a third mask to expose the active channel in the device portion and etching through the passivation layer and gate dielectric layer in the gate contact portion to expose the gate electrode;
depositing a metal layer over the patterned etch stop layer and the active channel layer; and
etching the metal layer using a forth mask to define a source electrode and a drain electrode at the device portion and a metal contact in the gate contact portion.
11. The method of claim 10, wherein the metal layer and the semiconductive active layer are etched using a plasma etching process.
12. The method of claim 10, wherein the semiconductive active layer is etched using a wet etching process and the metal layer is etched using a plasma etching process.
13. The method of claim 10, wherein the semiconductive active layer and the metal layer are etched using a wet etching process.
14. A thin film transistor formation method, comprising:
depositing and patterning a gate electrode over a substrate using a first mask;
depositing a gate dielectric layer over the gate electrode;
depositing a semiconductive active layer over the gate dielectric layer, the semiconductive active layer comprising oxygen, nitrogen, and one or more elements selected from the group consisting of zinc, indium, cadmium, gallium, and tin;
depositing first metal layer having a first composition over the semiconductor active layer;
depositing a second metal layer having a second composition different than the first composition over the first metal layer;
etching the second metal layer using a second mask to form one or more etch stops over a device portion of the thin film transistor while removing the second metal layer from a gate contact portion of the thin film transistor;
forming a third mask over the etched second metal layer;
etching the first metal layer to remove the first metal layer from the gate contact portion and to form an etched first metal layer over the device portion;
etching the semiconductive active layer to form an active channel in the device portion and to remove the semiconductive active layer from the gate contact portion; and
etching the etched first metal layer to form source and drain electrodes.
15. The method of claim 14, wherein the etching the second metal layer comprises wet etching.
16. The method of claim 15, wherein etching the first metal layer comprises plasma etching.
17. The method of claim 16, wherein etching the semiconductive active layer comprises wet etching.
18. The method of claim 17, wherein etching the first metal layer comprises plasma etching.
19. The method of claim 18, wherein the semiconductive active layer is deposited by applying a DC electrical bias to a metallic sputtering target comprising the one or more elements selected from the group consisting of zinc, indium, cadmium, gallium, and tin, and introducing an oxygen containing gas and a nitrogen containing gas.
20. The method of claim 19, wherein the oxygen containing gas and the nitrogen containing gas are separate gases, wherein the metallic sputtering target comprises a dopant selected from the group consisting of Al, Sn, Ga, Ca, Si, Ti, Cu, Ge, In, Ni, Mn, Cr, V, Mg, SixNy, AlxOy, SiC, and combinations thereof, and wherein the semiconductive active layer comprises a dopant selected from the group consisting of Al, Sn, Ga, Ca, Si, Ti, Cu, Ge, In, Ni, Mn, Cr, V, Mg, SixNy, AlxOy, SiC, and combinations thereof.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A disk brake comprising
a brake disk having a preferred rotational direction;
a first brake pad (2) having a first center of gravity (S1) on a first side of the brake disk (4), and being the only brake pad on said first side of the brake disk
a second brake pad (3) having a second center of gravity (S2) on a second side of the brake disk (4), and being the only brake pad on said second side of the brake disk
a caliper (1) for transmitting braking forces produced by the second brake pad (3) to the first side of the brake disk (4); and
a clamping device (5) which has a center axis and is configured to push the first brake pad (2) against the brake disk (4), wherein the center axis is perpendicular to the main plane of the brake disk (4) and extends through the first center of gravity (S1), wherein
the second center of gravity (S2) is offset, both when the brake is at rest and when actuated, from the first center of gravity (S1) by a predetermined distance (V) in the circumferential direction toward the side of the brake disk (4) which trails when the disk is rotating in the preferred rotational direction (D), wherein the two centers of gravity (S1, S2) are the same radial distance away from the center axis of the brake disk (4) so that the centers of gravity are circumferentially unsymmetrical and radially symmetrical.
2. The disk brake according to claim 1, wherein the offset (V) of the second center of gravity (S2) from the first center of gravity (S1) in the direction parallel to the brake disk (4) is at least in part due to an offset of the second brake pad (3) from the first brake pad (2) parallel to the brake disk (4).
3. The disk brake according to claim 1, wherein the offset (V) of the second center of gravity (S2) from the first center of gravity (S1) in the direction parallel to the brake disk (4) is at least in part due to a difference between the configurations of the first and second brake pads (2, 3).
4. The disk brake according to claim 1, wherein the offset (V) of the second center of gravity (S2) from the first center of gravity (S1) in the direction parallel to the brake disk (4) is at least in part due to a difference between the weight distributions of the first and second brake pads (2, 3).
5. The disk brake according to claim 1, wherein the first andor the second brake pad (2, 3) is wedge-shaped in at least one cross-sectional plane.
6. The disk brake according to claim 1, wherein the caliper (1) has an opening (9) in an area extending across the brake disk (4).
7. The disk brake according to claim 6, wherein the opening (9) extends across the first andor the second brake pad (2, 3) in a projection parallel to the brake disk.
8. The disk brake according to claim 6, wherein the opening (9) has a contour of a parallelogram.
9. The disk brake according to claim 1, comprising a plate-shaped bracket part (6).
10. The disk brake according to claim 9, wherein the bracket part (6) is an integral part of an axle part (7).
11. The disk brake according to claim 1, wherein the brake is a hinged caliper disk brake, or a fixed caliper disk brake with one-sided or two-sided clamping.
12. The disk brake according to claim 1, wherein the brake is a brake for commercial vehicles.
13. A disk brake comprising
a brake disk having a preferred rotational direction;
a first brake pad (2) having a first center of gravity (S1) on a first side of the brake disk (4), and being the only brake pad on said first side of the brake disk
a second brake pad (3) having a second center of gravity (S2) on a second side of the brake disk (4), and being the only brake pad on said second side of the brake disk
a sliding caliper (1) for transmitting braking forces produced by the second brake pad (3) to the first side of the brake disk (4); and
a clamping device (5) which has a center axis and is configured to push the first brake pad (2) against the brake disk (4), wherein the center axis is perpendicular to the main plane of the brake disk (4) and extends through the first center of gravity (S1), wherein
the second center of gravity (S2) is offset, both when the brake is at rest and when actuated, from the first center of gravity (S1) by a predetermined distance (V) in the circumferential direction toward the side of the brake disk (4) which trails when the disk is rotating in the preferred rotational direction (D), wherein the two centers of gravity (S1, S2) are the same radial distance away from the center axis of the brake disk (4) 50 that the centers of gravity are circumferentially unsymmetrical and radially symmetrical.