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Surface Electronic Transport Phenomena in Semiconductors: V. N. DOBROVOLSKY and

V. G. LITOVHENKO
(Oxford University Press, 1990,220 pp., £35)
Electronic processes taking part at or near the surfaces of semiconductor crystals or in the surface
layers playa crucial role in most semiconductor devices and circuits. In some, but not all, of
these devices new concepts are needed, and to use the properties and phenomena characteristic of
bulk semiconductors would be wrong.
This book draws together information about surface phenomena, and more particularly
analyses the experiments which exemplify and quantify them. It deals with Hall effect and
magneto resistance in two dimensional structures and the effects of the Lorenz force acting normal
to the surface; it deals with energy quantisation and carrier transport in surface channels and
with two-dimensional excitons.
This is an esoteric subject and is unlikely to draw a large audience, but for those researching
smaller devices and new surface effects, it will be a valuable source book. Ideas are clearly
explained, and there is a plentiful supply of references for those wanting to go deeper into
particular points. The book can be highly recommended for those working in the field.
DAVID NORTHROP

Introduction to Semiconductor Material and Devices: M. S. TYAGI

(J. Wiley, 1991,669 pp., £17.50)
The physics of semiconductor materials and devices is a subject that has produced many books,
some of them very good, and so any newcomer must be judged, at least in part, against what
already exists. In placing this book in context there are three things that are worthy of comment
immediately. Firstly the paperback edition is well priced at £17.50, so that there is a reasonable
chance of students buying it. Secondly, the book covers a great deal of ground, running to over
600 pages, and may well be usable for more than one course - it is in fact intended as a two
semester course book, which means that it does not fit comfortably into the British University
teaching year. And thirdly, although the basic physics of semiconductor devices does not change
much, the emphasis does shift as new developments occur, and the text does cover fully microwave
and opto electronic devices. However there is no treatment of the newer structure developed by
molecular beam epitaxy methods.
The student will find in this book everything he needs to know about the structures of devices
and the sample mathematical analysis of their characteristics based on simple structural models,
however' the basic physics of materials which is dealt with in the first few chapters is less good,
and for example I do not think the student will understand holes and effective mass, nor the
finer points of transport theory from this book alone. Similarly, the treatment of processing
technology is a little sketchy and gives no real impression of the difficulty and complexity of
device manufacture.
The book is well illustrated both with diagrams and numerical examples, and there are good
exercises for the student. However the mixture of c.g.s. and S.I. units is potentially confusing and to
be regretted.
DAVID NORTHROP

Physics and Technology ofHeterojunction Devices: ed. D. V. MORGAN and R. H. WILLIAMS

(I.E.E., 1991,310 pp., £49 U.K., $89)
The first point that the prospective reader of this book needs to appreciate is that is constitutes a
collection of essays by a group of sepecialist authors. It represents the content of a set of
seminars arranged during 1988 and 1989 at the University of Wales, College of Cardiff by the
present Editors and is aimed very much more at the specialist rather than the general technical
reader looking for a balanced overview of a relatively new, though maturing, area of research.
Its strengths and weaknesses stem from this format. In common with many other books of the
genre, it contains some excellent articles and much valuable material. On the other hand, because it