Module2 - Session2

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Dr.P.Rajasekar
Syllabus
PN Junction
ELECTRONIC DEVICES - PN Junction Diode
diode
Energy Band
& Zener Diode
Semiconductor
Current
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
Effect of temperature
Dr.P.Rajasekar
and Breakdown
mechanism
Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering

–Sri Krishna College of Technology, Coimbatore
rajasekarkpr@gmail.com & rajasekar.p@skct.edu.in
June 27, 2023

Outline
www.rajasekarkpronline.blogspot.com
Dr.P.Rajasekar
Syllabus
PN Junction 1 Syllabus
diode
Energy Band
Semiconductor
Current
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance 2 PN Junction diode
and Breakdown
mechanism
Energy Band
Semiconductor Current
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
Effect of temperature and Breakdown mechanism
Syllabus I
Dr.P.Rajasekar
Course Objective
Syllabus
1 To provide a comprehensive understanding of diodes and
PN Junction
diode transistors.
Energy Band
Semiconductor
Current
Course Outcome:
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance CO4 Analyze the characteristics of semiconductor diodes.
and Breakdown
mechanism
[AN]
PN junction I
Dr.P.Rajasekar
+ The fundamental building block of all semiconductor
Syllabus
devices is the p-n junction.
PN Junction
diode
Energy Band
+ Its primary electrical characteristic is that it allows current
Semiconductor
Current
to flow easily in one direction only.
+ The p-n junction is frequently referred to as a Diode.
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
and Breakdown
mechanism
Energy band diagram of p type & n type I
Dr.P.Rajasekar
+ The essential characteristic of the energy band is the
Syllabus
stability of the electronic electron’s energy states over
PN Junction
diode a wide range.
Energy Band
Semiconductor
Current
+ As a result, both the atom’s valence and conduction bands
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
will have different levels of energy.
and Breakdown
mechanism
Energy band diagram of p type & n type II
Dr.P.Rajasekar
Syllabus
PN Junction
diode
Energy Band
Semiconductor
Current
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
and Breakdown
mechanism
Figure: Energy band level of PN

Energy band diagram of p type & n type III
Dr.P.Rajasekar
Syllabus
PN Junction
diode
Energy Band
Semiconductor
Current
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
and Breakdown
mechanism
Figure: Energy band at instant of junction formation

Energy band diagram of p type & n type IV
Dr.P.Rajasekar
Valence Band & Conduction Band
Syllabus
The valence band is the uppermost nearly filled band, whereas
PN Junction
diode the conduction band is the lowermost almost empty band.
Energy Band
Semiconductor
The band gap is the distance between them.
Current
Diode Current
Fermi Level
+ The Fermi Level is the maximum energy level an
Diode Capacitance
and Breakdown
mechanism
electron may occupy when it is at absolute zero
temperature
+ Since the electrons are all in the lowest energy state at
absolute zero, the Fermi level is located between the
valence band and conduction band.
+ There is a big discontinuity in the fermi level across the pn
junction.
Energy band diagram of p type & n type V
Dr.P.Rajasekar
Ec – representation of the bottom edge of conduction band
Syllabus
Ev – representation of top edge of valance band
PN Junction
diode Eg – Difference between conduction band & Valence band
Energy Band
Semiconductor
Ec-Ev
Current
Diode Current
EI– Intrinsic energy level
Diode Capacitance
and Breakdown
mechanism
Energy band diagram of p type & n type VI
Dr.P.Rajasekar
Figure: Energy band level at Equilibrium state
Syllabus
PN Junction
diode
Energy Band
Semiconductor
Current
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
and Breakdown
mechanism
Figure: Energy band at equilibrium

Semiconductor Current I
Dr.P.Rajasekar
The movement of charged particles produces current
Syllabus
(negatively charged electrons and positively charged
PN Junction
diode holes). Carrier refers to the charged electrons and holes.
Energy Band
Semiconductor
In a semiconductor, there are two main mechanisms that drive
Current
Diode Current
electrons and holes to move:
Diode Capacitance
Drift Current : Electric field-induced movement is known as
and Breakdown
mechanism drift.
Diffusion Current: Diffusion is the flow that results from
changes in concentration.
Energy band - Equilibrium state I
Dr.P.Rajasekar
Thermal equilibrium (no applied field, no net current
Syllabus
flow)
PN Junction
diode + Since the currents are in opposition to one another, there
Energy Band
Semiconductor is no net flow of current during thermal equilibrium.
Current
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
+ One current flow mechanism will take precedence over the
and Breakdown
other in a non-equilibrium situation, producing a net
mechanism
current flow.
+ The potential barrier exists for the electrons that wish to
diffuse from the n-type layer to the p-layer.
PN Junction Barrier height
+ The built-in potential and junction potential both refer to
the potential barrier height Vbi across a p-n junction.
Energy band - Equilibrium state II
Dr.P.Rajasekar
+ The potential energy of this corresponding potential
Syllabus
barrier is qVbi.
PN Junction
diode + Electron potentials are going to be measured positively
Energy Band
Semiconductor downwards since electron energy is positive upwards in
Current
Diode Current the energy level diagrams.
Diode Capacitance
and Breakdown
mechanism
Figure: Energy band of PN junction diode

Energy band - Equilibrium state III
Dr.P.Rajasekar
Syllabus
PN Junction
diode
Energy Band
Semiconductor
Current
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
and Breakdown
mechanism
PN junction energy band diagram with bias
condition I
Dr.P.Rajasekar
+ PN junction in bias condition means applying voltage.
Syllabus
PN Junction
+ The behavior of energy bands with zero bias, forward
diode
Energy Band
applied voltage, reverse applied voltage .
Semiconductor
Current
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
and Breakdown
mechanism
condition II
Dr.P.Rajasekar
Figure: Energy band- Zero , Forward and Reverse
Syllabus
PN Junction
diode
Energy Band
At equilibrium
Semiconductor
Current + The fermi levels on the two sides of a p-n junction
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance match when it is in balance.
and Breakdown
mechanism
+ At the junction, electrons and holes achieve equilibrium
and form a depletion area.
+ The diagram’s upward arrow denotes an increase in
electron energy.
+ That suggests that we need to provide energy to make an
electron move up the diagram and energy to have a hole
move down the diagram.
condition III
Dr.P.Rajasekar
At Forward Bias
Syllabus
+ The p side is made more positive in order to forward bias
PN Junction
diode the p-n junction, making it “downhill” for electron
Energy Band
Semiconductor migration across the junction.
Current
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
+ A gap or hole close to the junction can be filled by an
and Breakdown
electron moving over it.
mechanism
+ The hole might then be said to be travelling right as it

moves from vacancy to vacancy leftward towards the
positive terminal.
+ In the diagram, electrons conduct from right to left, and
the upward trend denotes rising electron energy
At reverse bias
condition IV
Dr.P.Rajasekar
The p side of the p-n junction is made more negative to
Syllabus
reverse-bias it, making it “uphill” for electrons to cross the
PN Junction
diode junction.
Energy Band
Semiconductor In the diagram, electrons conduct from right to left, and
Current
Diode Current the upward trend denotes rising electron energy.
Diode Capacitance
and Breakdown
mechanism
Diode Current I
Dr.P.Rajasekar
Ideal Diodes
Syllabus
The diode equation gives an expression for the current through
PN Junction
diode a diode as a function of voltage. The Ideal Diode Law,
Energy Band
Semiconductor
expressed as qv
Current
Diode Current
I = I0 (e kT − 1) (1)
Diode Capacitance
and Breakdown
where:
mechanism
I = the net current flowing through the diode;
I0 = reverse saturation current;
V = applied voltage across the terminals of the diode;
q = absolute value of electron charge;
k = Boltzmann’s constant; and
T = absolute temperature (K).
Reverse Saturation Current
Diode Current II
Dr.P.Rajasekar
+ The current flowing through the p-n junction diode when
Syllabus
it is reversed biased is called reverse saturation current.
PN Junction
diode + The minority carriers are responsible for this current.In
Energy Band
Semiconductor a PN junction diode, the reverse saturation current is due
Current
Diode Current to the diffusive flow of minority electrons from the
Diode Capacitance
Effect of temperature p-side to the n-side and the minority holes from the
and Breakdown
mechanism
n-side to the p-side.
+ The reverse saturation current of the diode in the range
of µA to nA.
+ The reverse saturation current gets doubled for every 10
degree centigrade rise in temperature.
Diode Current III
Dr.P.Rajasekar
Diode Equation in Forward bias Condition
Syllabus
qv
PN Junction I = I0 (e kT − 1) (2)
diode
Energy Band
Semiconductor
Current From the above equation, in forward bias the large forward
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
current flows through the diode and value of the
and Breakdown exponent term is larger and the diode equation becomes
mechanism
qv
I = I0 (e kT ) (3)
Diode Equation in Reverse Biased Condition

Diode Current IV
Dr.P.Rajasekar
When the diode is in reverse biased condition , the
Syllabus
exponential term becomes negligible and diode current is
PN Junction
diode equal to the reverse saturation current.
Energy Band
I = −I0
Semiconductor
Current (4)
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
and Breakdown I0 increases as T increases;
mechanism
I0 decreases as material quality increases
Diode Equation at Room temperature
qv
I = I0 (e kT ) (5)
we know that q = 1.6 × 10−19 C k = 1.38 × 10−23 JK−1

Diode Current V
Dr.P.Rajasekar
At 300K, kT/q = 25.85 mV, the ”thermal voltage”.
Syllabus
v
PN Junction
diode
I = I0 (e 0.025η ) (6)
Energy Band
Semiconductor
Current Non Ideal Diode qv
I = I0 (e ηkT − 1)
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance (7)
and Breakdown
mechanism
where: η = ideality factor, a number between 1 and 2
which typically increases as the current decreases.
Diode Current -Simulation - Click here to open
Transition Capacitance CT of Diode (Space Charge
Capacitance) I
Dr.P.Rajasekar
+ In a reverse biased p-n junction diode, the p-type and
Syllabus
n-type regions have low resistance.
PN Junction
diode
Energy Band
+ p-type and n-type regions act like the electrodes or
Semiconductor
Current
conducting plates of the capacitor.
+ The depletion region of the p-n junction diode has high
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
and Breakdown
mechanism
resistance. Hence, the depletion region acts like the
dielectric or insulating material.
+ Thus, p-n junction diode can be considered as a
parallel plate capacitor.
With the increase of the magnitude of reverse bias, majority
carriers move away from the junction i.e. the width W of the
depletion layer increases.
Capacitance) II
Dr.P.Rajasekar
Syllabus
PN Junction
diode
Energy Band
Semiconductor
Current
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
and Breakdown
mechanism
Figure: Reverse Bias - Capacitance Model

Capacitance) III
Dr.P.Rajasekar
This uncovered immobile charge on the two sides of the
Syllabus
junction constitute a capacitor of incremental capacitance
PN Junction
diode CT or
Energy Band
Semiconductor
The change of capacitance at the depletion region can be
Current
Diode Current
defined as the change in electric charge per change in voltage.
Diode Capacitance
and Breakdown dQ
mechanism CT = (8)
dV
Hence, a voltage change dV in the time interval dt will result in
a current i was given by,
dV
i = CT (9)
dt
Capacitance) IV
Dr.P.Rajasekar
This capacitance CT is called the transition capacitance or
Syllabus
space charge capacitance or barrier capacitance or
PN Junction
diode depletion layer capacitance.
Energy Band
Semiconductor
Current
Important
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance More the magnitude of the reverse bias greater is the width
and Breakdown
mechanism
W of the depletion layer and smaller is the transition
capacitance CT .
Diffusion Capacitance or Storage Capacitance CD I
Dr.P.Rajasekar
How to form the CD
Syllabus
The diffusion capacitance occurs due to stored charge of
PN Junction
diode minority electrons and minority holes near the depletion
Energy Band
Semiconductor
region.
Current
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
and Breakdown
mechanism
Figure: Forward bias - Diffusion capacitance

Diffusion Capacitance or Storage Capacitance CD II
Dr.P.Rajasekar
+ Diffusion capacitance is directly proportional to the
Syllabus
electric current or applied voltage.
PN Junction
diode + If large electric current flows through the diode, a large
Energy Band
Semiconductor amount of charge is accumulated near the depletion layer.
Current
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
+ As a result, large diffusion capacitance occurs
and Breakdown
mechanism
Diffusion Capacitance or Storage Capacitance CD
III
Dr.P.Rajasekar
Syllabus
PN Junction
diode
Energy Band
Semiconductor
Current
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
and Breakdown
mechanism
Figure: Space charge and diffusion capacitance

Effect of temperature and Breakdown mechanism I
Dr.P.Rajasekar
An increased temperature will result in a large number of
Syllabus
broken covalent bonds increasing the large number of
PN Junction
diode majority and minority carriers. This amounts to a diode
Energy Band
Semiconductor
current larger than its previous diode current
Current
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
and Breakdown
mechanism
Figure: Temperature Effects

Effect of temperature and Breakdown mechanism II
Dr.P.Rajasekar
The increase in temperature due to heating decreases both
Syllabus
the forward resistance and reverse resistance, and in
PN Junction
diode comparison, increases the instantaneous diode current, which
Energy Band
Semiconductor
means that heating changes the entire V−I characteristics of a
Current
Diode Current
p-n junction diode.
Diode Capacitance
and Breakdown
mechanism
Breakdown I
Dr.P.Rajasekar
Definition
Syllabus
PN Junction The reverse current or the reverse saturation current due to the
diode
Energy Band
minority charge carriers is small. If the reverse bias applied
Semiconductor
Current to a p-n junction is increased beyond a point, the junction
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
breaks down and the reverse current rises sharply. The
and Breakdown voltage at which this happens is called the breakdown voltage
mechanism
Doping level
it depends on the width of the depletion region, which in
turn depends on the doping level.
Breakdown- Results
Breakdown II
Dr.P.Rajasekar
A normal p-n junction diode gets damaged at this point.
Syllabus
Specially designed diodes like Zener diode can be operated at
PN Junction
diode this region and can be used for the purpose of voltage
Energy Band
Semiconductor
regulation in circuits.
Current
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
Definition
and Breakdown
mechanism
Avalanche breakdown The avalanche breakdown occurs when a
high reverse voltage is applied across the diode. As we
increase the applied reverse voltage, the electric field across the
junction increases. This electric field exerts a force on the
electrons at the junction and frees them from covalent
bonds.
Breakdown III
Dr.P.Rajasekar
+ IS is observed to be almost independent of the applied
Syllabus
voltage at its initial stage.
PN Junction
diode + After reaching a particular point, the junction
Energy Band
Semiconductor breaks-down leading to the heavy flow of reverse
Current
Diode Current current through the device.
Diode Capacitance
and Breakdown
+ This is because, as the magnitude of the reverse voltage
mechanism
increases, the kinetic energy of the minority charge
carriers also increase. These fast moving electrons
collide with the other atoms in the device to knock-off
some more electrons from them.
Breakdown IV
Dr.P.Rajasekar
+ The electrons so released further release much more
Syllabus
electrons from the atoms by breaking the covalent bonds.
PN Junction
diode This process is termed as carrier multiplication and leads
Energy Band
Semiconductor
to a considerable increase in the flow of current through
Current
Diode Current
the p-n junction. The associated phenomenon is called
Diode Capacitance
Avalanche Breakdown
and Breakdown
mechanism
The eﬀiciency of Avalanche breakdown can be expressed in
terms of multiplication factor, M given by
1
M= (10)
1 − | VVBR |n
Breakdown V
Dr.P.Rajasekar
+ Avalanche breakdown occurs in lightly doped p-n
Syllabus
junctions when the reverse voltage increases beyond 5 V
PN Junction
diode + The Avalanche breakdown voltage has positive
Energy Band
Semiconductor temperature coeﬀicient
Current
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
and Breakdown
mechanism
Breakdown VI
Dr.P.Rajasekar
Figure: Avalanche Breakdown
Syllabus
PN Junction
diode
Energy Band
Zener Breakdown
Semiconductor
Current
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
and Breakdown
mechanism
Figure: Zener Diode

Breakdown VII
Dr.P.Rajasekar
Definition
Syllabus
Zener breakdown occurs in heavily doped junctions (p-type
PN Junction
diode semiconductor moderately doped and n-type heavily doped),
Energy Band
Semiconductor
which produces a narrow depletion region
Current
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
Zener Breakdown
and Breakdown
mechanism
The reverse current starts flowing in the junction because of
which depletion region entirely vanishes. This process is known
as the Zener breakdown.
+ If the material is heavily doped, the width of the depletion

region becomes very thin.
Breakdown VIII
Dr.P.Rajasekar
+ The thin depletion region has more numbers of free
Syllabus
electrons
PN Junction
diode + The strength of the electric field intensity becomes very
Energy Band
Semiconductor high.
Current
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
+ In Zener breakdown, the junction is not completely
and Breakdown
damaged. The depletion region regians its original
mechanism
position after the removal of the reverse voltage.
Breakdown IX
Dr.P.Rajasekar
Syllabus
PN Junction
diode
Energy Band
Semiconductor
Current
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
and Breakdown
mechanism
Figure: Zener Breakdown
Equivalent Circuit of an Ideal Zener Diode and Actual

Zener Diode
Breakdown X
Dr.P.Rajasekar
+ The breakdown region of the ideal Zener diode in the VI
Syllabus
curve is considered to be vertical.
PN Junction
diode + The graph shows that the voltage remains constant even
Energy Band
Semiconductor after the variation of the current.
Current
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
+ The resistance of the Zener diode is neglected. The Zener
and Breakdown
diode in the breakdown region ideally behaves like a
mechanism
battery.
Breakdown XI
Dr.P.Rajasekar
Syllabus
PN Junction
diode
Energy Band
Semiconductor
Current
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
and Breakdown
mechanism
Figure: Zener Diode - Reverse bias model

Breakdown XII
Dr.P.Rajasekar
Syllabus
PN Junction
diode
Energy Band
Semiconductor
Current
Diode Current
Diode Capacitance
and Breakdown
mechanism
Figure: Zener Votage -Reverse bias

Module2 - Session2

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www.rajasekarkpronline.blogspot.

Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering

June 27, 2023

Figure: Energy band level of PN

Figure: Energy band at instant of junction formation

Figure: Energy band at equilibrium

Figure: Energy band of PN junction diode

+ The hole might then be said to be travelling right as it

Diode Equation in Reverse Biased Condition

we know that q = 1.6 × 10−19 C k = 1.38 × 10−23 JK−1

Figure: Reverse Bias - Capacitance Model

Figure: Forward bias - Diffusion capacitance

Figure: Space charge and diffusion capacitance

Figure: Temperature Effects

Figure: Zener Diode

+ If the material is heavily doped, the width of the depletion

Figure: Zener Breakdown

Equivalent Circuit of an Ideal Zener Diode and Actual

Figure: Zener Diode - Reverse bias model

Figure: Zener Votage -Reverse bias

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