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NPN BJT with forward-biased E–B junction and reverse-biased B–C junction
The Bipolar transistor exhibits a few delay characteristics when turning on and
off. Most transistors, and especially power transistors, exhibit long base storage
time that limits maximum frequency of operation in switching applications. One
method for reducing this storage time is by using a Baker clamp.
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NPN
NPN is one of the two types of bipolar transistors, in which the letters "N" and "P"
refer to the majority charge carriers inside the different regions of the transistor.
Most bipolar transistors used today are NPN, because electron mobility is higher
than hole mobility in semiconductors, allowing greater currents and faster
operation.
NPN transistors consist of a layer of P-doped semiconductor (the "base")
between two N-doped layers. A small current entering the base in common-
emitter mode is amplified in the collector output. In other terms, an NPN
transistor is "on" when its base is pulled high relative to the emitter.
The arrow in the NPN transistor symbol is on the emitter leg and points in the
direction of the conventional current flow when the device is in forward active
mode.
One mnemonic device for identifying the symbol for the NPN transistor is "not
pointing in, or 'not pointing, no' "[5]
PNP
The other type of BJT is the PNP with the letters "P" and "N" referring to the
majority charge carriers inside the different regions of the transistor.
The arrow in the PNP transistor symbol is on the emitter leg and points in the
direction of the conventional current flow when the device is in forward active
mode.
One mnemonic device for identifying the symbol for the PNP transistor is
"pointing in proudly, or 'pointing in - pah'."[5]
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The heterojunction bipolar transistor (HBT) is an improvement of the BJT that can
handle signals of very high frequencies up to several hundred GHz. It is common
nowadays in ultrafast circuits, mostly RF systems.[6][7] Heterojunction
transistors have different semiconductors for the elements of the transistor.
Usually the emitter is composed of a larger bandgap material than the base. The
figure shows that this difference in bandgap allows the barrier for holes to inject
backward into the base, denoted in figure as Δφp, to be made large, while the
barrier for electrons to inject into the base Δφn is made low. This barrier
arrangement helps reduce minority carrier injection from the base when the
emitter-base junction is under forward bias, and thus reduces base current and
increases emitter injection efficiency.
The improved injection of carriers into the base allows the base to have a higher
doping level, resulting in lower resistance to access the base electrode. In the
more traditional BJT, also referred to as homojunction BJT, the efficiency of
carrier injection from the emitter to the base is primarily determined by the
doping ratio between the emitter and base, which means the base must be
lightly doped to obtain high injection efficiency, making its resistance relatively
high. In addition, higher doping in the base can improve figures of merit like the
Early voltage by lessening base narrowing.
Regions of operation:
It should also be noted that the emitter current is related to VBE exponentially.
At room temperature, an increase in VBE by approximately 60 mV increases the
emitter current by a factor of 10. Because the base current is approximately
proportional to the collector and emitter currents, they vary in the same way.
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It should also be noted that the emitter current is related to VEB exponentially.
At room temperature, an increase in VEB by approximately 60 mV increases the
emitter current by a factor of 10. Because the base current is approximately
proportional to the collector and emitter currents, they vary in the same way.