SEMICONDUCTOR

ELECTRONICS
REVIEW OF TOPICS
• Band Theory
• Types of Semiconductors and Energy bands
• P-N Junction Diode, Forward and Reverse bias
• Applications of P-N Junctions of Diode
• a) Rectifiers
• b) Solar Cell
• c) Photo Diode
• d) L.E.D
Band Theory of Solids
A useful way to visualize the difference between conductors,
insulators and semiconductors is to plot the available energies for
electrons in the materials. Instead of having discrete energies as
in the case of free atoms, the available energy states form bands.
Crucial to the conduction process is whether or not there are
electrons in the conduction band. In insulators the electrons in the
valence band are separated by a large gap from the conduction
band, in conductors like metals the valence band overlaps the
conduction band, and in semiconductors there is a small enough
gap between the valence and conduction bands that thermal or
other excitations can bridge the gap. With such a small gap, the
presence of a small percentage of a doping material can increase
conductivity dramatically.
An important parameter in the band theory is the Fermi level, the
top of the available electron energy levels at low temperatures.
The position of the Fermi level with the relation to the conduction
band is a crucial factor in determining electrical properties.
Energy Bands Comments
 Conductor Energy
Bands
In terms of the
band theory of solids, metals
are unique as good
conductors of electricity. This
can be seen to be a result of
their valence electrons being
essentially free. In the band
theory, this is depicted as an
overlap of the valence band
and the conduction band so
that at least a fraction of the
valence electrons can move
through the material.
 Semiconductor Energy Bands

For intrinsic semiconductors

like silicon and germanium,
the Fermi level is essentially
halfway between the valence
and conduction bands.
Although no conduction
occurs at 0 K, at
higher temperatures a finite
number of electrons can
reach the conduction band
and provide some current. In
doped semiconductors, extra
energy levels are added.
Silicon

In solid state electronics, either pure

silicon or germanium may be used as the
intrinsic semiconductor which forms the
starting point for fabrication. Each has
four valence electrons, but germanium
will at a given temperature have more
free electrons and a higher conductivity.
Silicon is by far the more widely used
semiconductor for electronics, partly
because it can be used at much higher
temperatures than germanium.
 Germanium
In solid state electronics,
either pure silicon or
germanium may be used as
the intrinsic semiconductor
which forms the starting
point for fabrication. Each
has four valence electrons,
but germanium will at a
given temperature have
more free electrons and a
higher conductivity. Silicon is
by far the more widely used
semiconductor for
electronics, partly because it
can be used at much higher
temperatures than
germanium.
 The main point here is that a silicon atom has
four electrons which it can share in covalent
bonds with its neighbors. These simplified
diagrams do not do justice to the nature of
that sharing since any one silicon atom will be
influenced by more than four other silicon
atoms, as may be appreciated by looking at
the silicon unit cell.

Silicon atoms form covalent bonds and can crystallize into a

regular lattice. The illustration below is a simplified sketch;
the actual crystal structure of silicon is a diamond lattice. This
crystal is called an intrinsic semiconductor and can conduct a
small amount of current.
Intrinsic
Semiconductor
A silicon crystal is different
from an insulator because at
any temperature above
absolute zero temperature,
there is a finite probability that
an electron in the lattice will be
knocked loose from its
position, leaving behind an
electron deficiency called a "
hole".
If a voltage is applied, then
both the electron and the hole
can contribute to a small
current flow.
 Semiconductor Current

Both electrons and holes contribute to

current flow in an intrinsic semiconductor
Electrons and Holes
In an intrinsic semiconductor like silicon at
temperatures above absolute zero, there will be some
electrons which are excited across the band gap into
the conduction band and which can produce current.
When the electron in pure silicon crosses the gap, it
leaves behind an electron vacancy or "hole" in the
regular silicon lattice. Under the influence of an
external voltage, both the electron and the hole can
move across the material. In an n-type semiconductor,
the dopant contributes extra electrons, dramatically
increasing the conductivity. In a p-type semiconductor,
the dopant produces extra vacancies or holes, which
likewise increase the conductivity. It is however the
behavior of the p-n junction which is the key to the
enormous variety of solid-state electronic devices.
In intrinsic semiconductors, the
number of free electrons, ne is equal to
the number of holes, nh.
That is ne = nh = ni
where ni is called intrinsic carrier
concentration.
The total current, I is thus the sum of the
electron current Ie and the hole current Ih
I = Ie + Ih
It may be noted that apart from the process of
generation of conduction electrons and holes, a
simultaneous process of recombination occurs
in which the electrons recombine with the
holes. At equilibrium, the rate of generation is
equal to the rate of recombination of charge
carriers. The recombination occurs due to an
electron colliding with a hole.
(a) An intrinsic semiconductor at T = 0 K
behaves like insulator. (b) At T > 0 K, four thermally
generated
electron-hole pairs. The filled circles ( ) represent
electrons
and empty fields ( ) represent holes.
The conductivity of an intrinsic semiconductor
depends on its temperature, but at room temperature
its conductivity is very low. As
such, no important electronic devices can be
developed using these semiconductors.
When a small amount, say, a few parts per
million (ppm), of a suitable
impurity is added to the pure semiconductor,
the conductivity of the
semiconductor is increased manifold. Such
materials are known as
extrinsic semiconductors or impurity
semiconductors. The deliberate
addition of a desirable impurity is called
doping and the impurity atoms are called
dopants. Such a material is also called a
doped semiconductor.
The dopant has to be such that it does
not distort the original pure
semiconductor lattice. It occupies only
a very few of the original
semiconductor atom sites in the
crystal. A necessary condition to attain
this is that the sizes of the dopant and
the semiconductor atoms should be
nearly the same.
There are two types of dopants used in doping the
tetravalent Si or Ge:
(i) Pentavalent (valency 5); like Arsenic (As), Antimony
(Sb), Phosphorous (P), etc.
(ii) Trivalent (valency 3); like Indium (In),
Boron (B), Aluminium (Al), etc.
 The Doping of Semiconductors
The addition of a small percentage of foreign atoms in the regular
crystal lattice of silicon or germanium produces dramatic changes
in their electrical properties, producing n-type and p-type
semiconductors.
Pentavalent impurities Impurity atoms with 5 valence electrons
produce n-type semiconductors by contributing extra electrons.

Trivalent impurities Impurity atoms with 3 valence electrons produce p-type

semiconductors by producing a "hole" or electron deficiency.
N-Type Semiconductor

The addition of pentavalent

impurities such as antimony,
arsenic or phosphorous
contributes free electrons,
greatly increasing the
conductivity of the
intrinsic semiconductor.
Phosphorous may be added
by diffusion of phosphine
 Commonly used schematic
representation of n-type material
which shows only the fixed cores
of the substituent donors with one
additional effective positive
charge and its associated extra
electron.

The energy required is ~ 0.01 eV for

germanium, and 0.05 eV for silicon, to
separate this electron from its atom. This
is in contrast to the energy required to
jump the forbidden band (about 0.72 eV
for germanium and about 1.1 eV for
silicon) at room temperature in the
intrinsic semiconductor.
In a doped semiconductor the total number of
conduction electrons ne is due to the electrons
contributed by donors and those generated
intrinsically, while the total number of holes nh
is only due to the holes from the intrinsic source.
But the rate of recombination of holes would
increase due to the increase in the number of
electrons. As a result, the number of holes would
get reduced further.

For n-type semiconductors, we have,

ne >> nh
 P-Type Semiconductor

The addition of
trivalent impurities
such as boron,
aluminum or gallium
to an
intrinsic semiconduc
tor
creates deficiencies
of valence
electrons,called
"holes". It is typical
to use B2H6 diborane
Commonly used schematic
representation of p-type material which
shows only the fixed core of the
substituent acceptor with one effective
additional negative charge and its
associated hole.
P-N Junction
One of the crucial keys to
solid state electronics is the nature of
the P-N junction. When p-type and
n-type materials are placed in contact
with each other, the junction behaves
very differently than either type of
material alone. Specifically, current will
flow readily in one direction (
forward biased) but not in the other (
reverse biased), creating the basic
diode. This non-reversing behavior
arises from the nature of the charge
transport process in the two types of
materials.
The open circles on the left side of the junction above
represent "holes" or deficiencies of electrons in the
lattice which can act like positive charge carriers. The
solid circles on the right of the junction represent the
available electrons from the n-type dopant. Near the
junction, electrons diffuse across to combine with
holes, creating a "depletion region". The energy level
sketch above right is a way to visualize the
equilibrium condition of the P-N junction. The upward
direction in the diagram represents increasing electron
energy.
We know that in an n-type semiconductor,
the concentration of electrons (number of
electrons per unit volume) is more
compared to the concentration of holes.
Similarly, in a p-type semiconductor, the
concentration of holes is more than the
concentration of electrons. During the
formation of p-n junction, and due to the
concentration gradient across p-, and n-
sides, holes diffuse from p-side
to n-side (p → n) and electrons diffuse from
n-side to p-side (n → p). This
motion of charge carries gives rise to
diffusion current across the junction.
 Depletion Region

When a p-n junction is formed, some of the free

electrons in the n-region diffuse across the junction
and combine with holes to form negative ions. In so
doing they leave behind positive ions at the donor
impurity sites.
Depletion Region Details

In the p-type region there

are holes from the acceptor
impurities and in the n-type
region there are extra
electrons.

When a p-n junction is

formed, some of the electrons
from the n-region which have
reached the conduction band
are free to diffuse across the
junction and combine with
holes.
Filling a hole makes a
negative ion and leaves
behind a positive ion on
the n-side. A space
charge builds up,
creating a
depletion region which
inhibits any further
electron transfer unless
it is helped by putting a
forward bias on the
junction.
Due to the positive space-charge region on n-
side of the junction and negative space charge
region on p-side of the junction, an electric
field directed from positive charge towards
negative charge develops. Due to this field, an
electron on p-side of the junction moves to n-
side and a hole on n-side of the junction moves
to p-side. The motion of charge carriers due to
the electric field is called drift.
Initially, diffusion current is large and drift
current is small. As the diffusion process
continues, the space-charge regions on
either side of the junction extend, thus
increasing the electric field strength and
hence drift current. This process continues
until the diffusion current equals the drift
current. Thus a p-n junction is formed. In a p-
n junction under equilibrium there
is no net current.
The loss of electrons from the n-region and
the gain of
electron by the p-region causes a difference
of potential across the junction of the two
regions. The polarity of this potential is such
as to oppose further flow of carriers so that
a condition of equilibrium exists. Since this
potential tends to prevent the movement of
electron from the n region into the p region,
it is often called a barrier potential.
Coulomb force from ions
prevents further migration
across the p-n junction. The
electrons which had migrated
across from the N to the P
region in the forming of the
depletion layer have now
reached equilibrium. Other
electrons from the N region
cannot migrate because they
are repelled by the negative
ions in the P region and
attracted by the positive ions
in the N region.
(a) Semiconductor diode,
(b) Symbol for p-n
junction diode.
 Forward Biased P-N
Junction

Forward biasing the p-n junction

drives holes to the junction from the
p-type material and electrons to the
junction from the n-type material. At
the junction the electrons and holes
combine so that a continuous current
can be maintained.
An applied voltage in the
forward direction as
indicated assists
electrons in overcoming
the coulomb barrier of
the space charge in
depletion region.
Electrons will flow with
Due to the applied voltage, electrons from n-side
cross the depletion region and reach p-side (where
they are minority carries). Similarly, holes from p-
side cross the junction and reach the n-side (where
they are minority carries). This process under
forward bias is known as minority carrier injection.
At the junction boundary, on each side, the minority
carrier concentration increases significantly
compared to the locations far from the junction.
if a forward-biasing voltage is applied across the P-N
junction, the depletion region collapses becoming thinner.
The diode becomes less resistive to current through it. In
order for a sustained current to go through the diode;
though, the depletion region must be fully collapsed by the
applied voltage. This takes a certain minimum voltage to
accomplish, called the forward voltage as illustrated in
Figure below.
For silicon diodes, the typical forward
voltage is 0.7 volts, nominal. For
germanium diodes, the forward voltage is
only 0.3 volts.
 Reverse Biased P-N Junction

The application of a reverse voltage to the

p-n junction will cause a transient current to
flow as both electrons and holes are pulled
away from the junction. When the potential
formed by the widened depletion layer
equals the applied voltage, the current will
cease except for the small thermal current.
The direction of applied voltage is same as the direction
of barrier potential. As a result, the barrier height
increases and the depletion region widens due to the
change in the electric field. The effective barrier height
under reverse bias is
(V0 + V ), This suppresses the flow of electrons from n →
p and holes from p → n. Thus, diffusion current,
decreases enormously compared to the diode under
forward bias.The electric field direction of the junction
The electric field direction of the
junction is such that if electrons on p-
side or holes on n-side in their random
motion come close to the junction,
they will be swept to its majority zone.
This drift of carriers gives rise to
current. The drift current is of the
order of a few μA.

Depletion region
expands with
reverse bias.
Forward bias, the
current first increases
very slowly, almost
negligibly, till the
voltage across the diode
crosses a certain value.
After the characteristic
voltage, the diode
current increases
significantly
(exponentially), even for
a very small increase in
the diode bias voltage.
This voltage is called the
threshold voltage or cut-
in voltage (~0.2V for
For the diode in reverse
bias, the current is very
small (~μA) and almost
remains constant with
change in bias. It is
called reverse saturation
current. However, for
special cases, at very
high reverse bias (break
down voltage), the
current suddenly
increases The general
purpose diode are not
used beyond the reverse
saturation current
•REVIEW:
•A diode is an electrical component acting as a one-way
valve for current.
•When voltage is applied across a diode in such a way
that the diode allows current, the diode is said to be
forward-biased.
•When voltage is applied across a diode in such a way
that the diode prohibits current, the diode is said to be
reverse-biased.
•The voltage dropped across a conducting, forward-
biased diode is called the forward voltage. Forward
voltage for a diode varies only slightly for changes in
forward current and temperature, and is fixed by the
chemical composition of the P-N junction.
•Silicon diodes have a forward voltage of approximately
0.7 volts.
•Germanium diodes have a forward voltage of
approximately 0.3 volts.
•The maximum reverse-bias voltage that a diode can
withstand without “breaking down” is called the Peak
Inverse Voltage, .
•Solar Cell The Special Purpose Diode:
•Solar Cell is a basically a solar energy
converter. It is
special purpose P-N junction device
which is used to convert the solar energy
into the electrical energy.
•Symbol of the solar cell is given
below:
•Construction Of The Solar Cell:
•A solar cell consists of Silicon or Gallium-
Arsenide P-N junction diode. For making the
solar cell a layer of the thin P-Type semiconductor
is deposit over the thick N-Type semiconductor.
The metal electrodes is deposit on the back side of
the solar cell and the Finger cutted or slotted
cuted metal electrode is deposit over the front
side of the Solar Cell.
•Reason For Slotted Cutting in the Front
phase of the Solar cell :
•Because to provide more exposed area
for the front phase i.e. more and more
light radiations will allow to fall on the
front phase of the Solar cell. So, Slotted
cutted or Finger cutted electrodes are
used in the solar cell.
•An Anti-reflective coating is done on the front
phase of the Solar Cell i.e. by this the light
radiations will trapped in the solar cell and this
Anti-reflective layer will not allow the light
radiations to pass out from the solar cell.
Working Of The Solar Cell:
The Working Of the Solar Cell is based on the
Following three Processes Which are explained
as follows.
•Generation Of the Electron and Hole Pair.
•Separation Of electron-hole pair.
•Collections of the electron-hole at the
opposite ends.
When the photon of the light having energy less
than the bang gap energy will fall on the front
phase of the solar cell it’s barrier potential will
does not break and it not work and remains in the
off state and not output is obtained.
And the Photons having energy is greater than or
equal to the band gap energy will fall on the front
phase of the solar cell i.e. on the depletion region.
The electrons and holes are generated which gets
immediately separated during the presence of the
electric fiel in depletion field. And after that they are
collected t the opposite at opposite ends and the
E.M.F is developed. And if connected to the load
resistance in the outer circuit the current start flowing
in the outer circuit.
terial Used For the making the Solar Cells are:
con, Germanium and GaAs.

Properties of the materials used for making

the Solar Cell:
•Materials should have high optical absorption
ability.
•The band gap should between 1 ev to 1.8 ev.
•They should be cheap and easily available.
Uses/Applications Of Solar Cell:
•Solar cell are used for charging the Storage
batteries at the day time which can supply
power at the night time.
•Solar cell are also used in the Artificial Satellite
to generate the electricity.
•They are used for generating the electrical
energy for the cooking food.
•They are used in the calculators and in the
street lights.
•They are used in the Remote areas to generate
the electricity.
•Used in the Wrist Watches and in the
applications of the light meters i.e. in the
photography.
•Used to make the Solar Panel
 Photo diode Or Photo detector:

It’s working is based upon the photo conduction

from light. A photo diode is a semiconductor
device made from the semiconductor material.
Working Of the Photo diode:
When the Photons of the Energy is greater then band
gap energy will allow to fall on the depletion region
. Electron hole pair are generated which get
separated and moves towards the opposite sides
under the effect of the electric field and hence
current is produced. Greater the intensity of the
incident of the light falling on the photo diode greater
is the current produced. The current in the photo
diode is called as Dark Current. A Photo diode can
turn ON or OFF only in the nanoseconds. So, Photo
diode is the fastest Photo detector.
 V-I Characteristics Of Photo diode:

Where E1 , E2 , E3 , E4 , E5 are the

intensity of the incident Light.
 Note: Photo Diode is deliberately Reversed Biased
because the small change in the current in the circuit can
be easily detected and where as in the Forward Biasing
already large current flows. So, it is Reversed Biased So,
that small change in the current can easily detected.

Advantages Of The Photo-Diode:

•In Photo detection for Optical Signal.
•In demodulation for the optical signals.
•In switching the light on or off.
•In the optical communication equipment’s
•In the logic circuit’s for require the stability or
speed.
So, These are the examples of Special Purpose
Diodes.
LED stands for Light Emitted Diode. It
is a P-N junction diode which emits the
radiations of light when it is
forward biased. Symbol of LED (Light
Emitted Diode).
Working of the Light Emitted Diode is based on the Principle that
when diode is forward biased the electron and hole recombination
takes place in the depletion region of P-N junction diode and
when the electron hole recombination takes place the radiations of
light are emitted in the form of photons of light by the
recombination of the electrons and holes. So, Light Emitted Diode is
a semiconductor source of light. This effect is called as
electroluminescent and the color off the light which is emitted by
the Light Emitted Diode will depend on the Energy band gap
between the semiconductors.
Applications And Uses Of LED’S (Light Emitted
Diode):
There are Wide and numerous range of the
Applications and the Uses of the Light Emitted
Diode
•Uses in the Burglar – Alarm systems , Infrared
LED’s Are used.
•In Calculators and Digital Watches.
•In the field of the optical communications.
•In Image sensing circuits.
•Used to make Seven Segment LED Display.
•High Resolution.
•High Aspect Ratio.
•For Displaying letters and numbers or for the
installing information in the optical computer
memories.
•Used in the Remote Controls and in the toys.
•Used to make many different types of sensors.
•Used in the Smart light and indicators and signs.
vantages Of The LED’S Over The Incandescent Lamp:

•Light Emitted Diode have Fast On and

Off action.
•Light Emitted Diode has Long Life.
•In Light Emitted Diode Light is
Monochromatic.
•Light Emitted Diode is cheap and easy
to handle
•Light Emitted Diode has less power and
low operational voltage.
•It is Non toxic in Effect i.e. the ordinary
lamp contains the CFC which has
harmful effect on the environment.
What is a Transistor?
Transistors are the Two junctions and Three terminals
devices which consist of three parts of semiconductors and made
by depositing thin layer of semiconductor between thick layers of
two similar semiconductor materials. Transistors are of two
types N-P-N Transistor and P-N-P transistor.
•Emitter.
•Base.
•Collector.
These are the three terminals of the transistor.
•Emitter- Base Junction.
•Base-Collector junction.
These are the two junction of a transistor.
Emitter: This is the segment on one side of the
transistor
It is of moderate size and heavily doped. It supplies
a large number of majority carriers for the current
flow throughthe transistor.
• Base: This is the central segment. It is very thin
and lightly doped.
• Collector: This segment collects a major portion of
the majority carriers supplied by the emitter. The
collector side is moderatelydoped and larger in size
as compared to the emitter.
 Transistor configurations :
1. A transistor has three terminals, viz., emitter, base
and collector.
2. To give input, two terminals are required and to take
output two terminals are required. So one of the three base,
emitter or collector is connected common to the other two
terminals.
3. This gives rise to three ways of using a transistor viz.,
common base (CB), common emitter (CE) and common
collector (CC). These are called transistor configurations.
4. Transistor is most widely used in CE.
Biasing a transistor :
1. Connecting a battery to a transistor in the proper way
is called biasing.
2. One battery is connected between E and B. The
junction between E and B is FB. This part of the circuit is called
input circuit.
3. The junction between C and B is always RB. This part of
the circuit is output circuit.
 • Working Of The N-P-N Transistor:

In the N-P-N Transistor the Emitter

is connected to the negative terminal
of Vee battery for making it forward
biased and collector terminal is
connected to the positive terminal of
the Vcc battery for making it reversed
biased. And Ie is the current flowing
in the Emitter-Base junction and Ic is
current which is flowing in the Base-
Collector Junction
•Explanation:
•In the N-Type emitter the majority carriers are free electrons. So,
negative terminal of Vee repels the electron of emitter and positive
plate of Vcc battery attract the electron emitted by emitter. So,
electron starts moving from emitter to collector. So, while their motion
from emitter to collector electron pass through base region and where
some of electron may recombine with holes roughly 5% of the
electrons emitted by emitter recombine with holes in base region 95%
of electrons are able to reach at collector which produce current in the
N-P-N Transistor.
Working Of The P-N-P Transistor:
•In the P-N-P Transistor Emitter is
connected to the positive terminal
of the Vee battery for making it
forward biased and collector
terminal is connected to the
negative terminal of the Vcc battery
for making it reversed biased. And
Ie is current flowing in the Emitter-
Base junction and Ic is the current
which is flowing in Base-Collector
Junction.
•Explanation:
•In the P-Type emitter the majority carriers are the free holes. So, positive
terminal of Vee repels the holes of the emitter and negative plate of Vcc
battery attract the holes emitted by the emitter. So, holes starts moving
from emitter to collector. So, while their motion from emitter to collector
holes will pass through base region and where some of holes may
recombine with electron roughly 5% of the holes emitted by emitter
recombine with electron in base region and 95% of holes are able to reach
at collector which produce current in P-N-P transistor.
•Concept For The N-P-N And P-N-P
Transistor:
•The Working Of N-P-N And P-N-P Transistor is
explained above So, the N-P-N transistors are
used much than the P-N-P transistors because
in N-P-N transistors input and output current
is carried by the electrons and where in case
of P-N-P Transistors input current is carried by
holes and output current is carried by
electrons and the mobility of electors are
much greater than the mobility of holes. So,
N-P-N is more prefer over P-N-P Transistor.
 Transistor characteristics :
1 A transistor has two characteristics :
a) Input characteristics and
b) Output characteristics
Input characteristics (CE) :

1. These are the graphs

which show the behaviour of a
transistor when forward biased.
2. Input characteristics are
the graphs which show how input
current IB changes with input
voltage VBE when output voltage
VCE is at kept constant.
3. Keeping VCE at some
convenient value, VBE is gradually
increased in equal steps. The
corresponding IB values are noted
and a graph between VBE and IB
plolted is as shown in the above
graph ie fig (b).
1. These are the graphs which show how
output current Ic changes with output voltage
VCE when IB is kept constant.
2. Keeping IB at some convenient value say
10mA, VCE
is changed in equal steps and
corresponding values of
Ic are noted. The graph between IC and
VCE is plotted
Transistor as an
Amplifier
Transistor Oscillator :
 1. In an oscillator, ac output is obtained without any
external input signal. The output in an oscillator is self
sustained.
2. An oscillator is basically an amplifier. A part of the
output is given back to the input in phase with it. ( +ve
feedback)
4. Suppose the switch S is closed. This causes a surge of
3. The
collector feedback
current is obtained
to flow through by
T2.LC or RC.
5. Due to inductive coupling between T1 and T2 an emitter
current IE flows (feed back). After some time IC becomes
saturated.
6. When IC becomes maximum, there is no induction and
7. Decreasing
no feedback. IC now
collector current starts decreasing.
further decreases IE till it
becomes zero.
 U
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