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ECEg3104
Applied Electronics I Chapter-1 Semiconductor Theory

By: Behailu T.

Semiconductors … Here, there, everywhere!

In this chapter you will learn:
 Computers: Silicon (Si) MOSFETs, Integrated Circuits (ICs)
 The basic properties of semiconductors
In particular, silicon the material used to make most modern electronic circuits.  Anything “intelligent” : CMOS, RAM, DRAM, flash memory cells
 How doping a pure silicon crystal dramatically changes its  Cell phones, Solar Panels: Si ICs, GaAs FETs, BJTs
electrical conductivity
The fundamental idea in underlying the use of semiconductors in the implementation of electronic  TV remotes, mobile terminals: LEDs
devices.

 The two mechanisms by which current flows in  Satellite dishes: InGaAs MMICs
semiconductors  Optical fiber networks: InGaAsP, laser diodes, pin photodiodes
Drift and diffusion charge carriers

 The structure and operation of the pn-junction  Traffic signal: GaN LEDs
A basic semiconductor structure that implements the diode
They are very important !!!
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Energy Band Theory Semiconductor

Conduction Band  A material whose conductivity lies between that of

conductors (copper) and insulators (glass).
Increasing Energy

 A crystal lattice structure that can have free electrons

Overlap Conduction Band
Band gap and/or free holes (which are an absence of electrons and
Conduction Band Band gap
are equivalent to positive carriers).
 Silicon is typically used in many electronic devices which is
Valance Band Valance Band Valance Band
an abundant element found, for example, in high
Conductors Semiconductors Insulators concentrations in sand.

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Silicon: default example and main focus Intrinsic Silicon: - pure, perfect, R.T.
• Atomic no. 14
• Silicon forms strong  At room temp
covalent bonds with  some covalent bonds break, freeing an
4 neighbors
electron and creating hole, due to thermal
 At low temps energy
 all covalent bonds are  some electrons will wander from their
intact parent atoms, becoming available for
 no electrons are conduction
available for conduction  conductivity is greater than zero
 conductivity is zero

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Intrinsic Silicon: - pure, perfect, R.T. Intrinsic Silicon: - pure, perfect, R.T.
 The intrinsic carrier concentration, ni, is very sensitive to
 In thermal equilibrium, the temperature, varying exponentially with 1/T:
concentration of free electrons
/ /
=
n0 is equal to the concentration
where:
of holes p0, B is a material-dependent parameter that is 7.3 10 /
for Si
T is the temperature in K
bandgap energy, is 1.12 electron volt (eV) for Si
= =
[NB: 1 eV = 1.6 10 J]
k is Boltzmann’s constant ( 8.62 10 eV/K)
where ni = intrinsic carrier concentration
 At R. T., 300K, ≈ 1.5 10
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Doped Semiconductors Doped Semiconductors - carefully chosen impurities

 The intrinsic silicon crystal described has equal concentrations of free electrons
and holes, generated by thermal generation. p-type semiconductor
 These concentrations are far too small for silicon to conduct appreciable current  Silicon is doped with element having a
valence of 3 to increase the
at room temperature. concentration of holes (p).
 One example is boron, which is an
 The conductivity are strong functions of temperature, not a desirable property in
acceptor.
an electronic device.  If NA >> ni, then the concentration of
 A method was developed to change the carrier concentration in a holes in the p-type (Pp) is defined as:

semiconductor crystal substantially and in a precisely controlled manner.

 This process is known as doping, and the resulting silicon is referred to as
Where NA is concentration of acceptor atoms
doped silicon.
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Doped Semiconductors - carefully chosen impurities Doped Semiconductors - carefully chosen impurities
p-type semiconductor
n-type semiconductor
 Concentration of electrons( ) will have the same  Silicon is doped with element having
a valence of 5 to increase the
dependence on temperature as concentration free electrons (n).
 One example is phosphorus, which is
 Concentration of holes ( ) will be much larger than a donor.
 If ND >> ni then the concentration of
electrons electrons in the n-type (nn) is defined
as:
 Holes are the majority charge carriers
Where ND is concentration of donor atoms
 Free electrons are the minority charge carrier
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Doped Semiconductors - carefully chosen impurities Drift Current

 When an electrical field E is established in
n-type semiconductor a semiconductor crystal, holes are
 Concentration of holes( ) will have the same dependence on accelerated in the direction of E, and free
electrons are accelerated in the direction
temperature as opposite to that of E.
 Concentration of free electrons ( ) will be much larger than holes  The holes acquire a velocity
given by
 Electrons are the majority charge carriers
 Holes are the minority charge carrier
The key here in both types of materials is that number of free electrons/holes where μp is a constant called the hole mobility
(aka. conductivity) is dependent on doping concentration, not temperature For intrinsic silicon μp = 480 cm2/V ·s
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Drift Current Drift Current

 The free electrons acquire a velocity
given by  Current component attributed to the flow Ip
of holes:

 The result is negative because the where

electrons move in the direction opposite A is the cross-sectional area of the silicon bar
to E. q is the magnitude of electron charge
 where μn is a constant called the electron mobility p concentration of holes
 For intrinsic silicon μn = 1350 cm2/V ·s  Substituting for νp-drift we obtain:
 Note that μn is about 2.5 times μp, signifying that electrons move with
much greater ease through the silicon crystal than do holes.
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Drift Current Drift Current

 Usually interested in the current density  The current component due to the drift of
Jp free electrons can be found in a similar
Ip manner.
 Note, however, that electrons drifting
from right to left result in a current
In
component from left to right.
 This is because of the convention of taking
the direction of current flow as the
direction of flow of positive charge and
opposite to the direction of flow of
negative charge.
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Drift Current Drift Current

 Thus,  The total drift current density can now be
found by summing Jp and Jn

 Substituting for νn-drift , we obtain the

In  This relationship can be written as:
current density Jn

 where the conductivity σ is given by:

 And the resistivity ρ is given by:

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Diffusion Current Diffusion Current

 Carrier diffusion is the flow of charge
carriers from area of high concentration
to low concentration.
 It requires non-uniform distribution of
carriers.
 Diffusion current is the current flow that
results from diffusion of charge carriers.
Take the following example
 Inject holes by some unspecified
process, one injects holes in to the left
side of a silicon bar.
 Concentration profile arises because of
this continuous hole inject, a
concentration profile arises.
 Diffusion occurs because of this
concentration gradient, holes will flow
from left to right.

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Diffusion Current Diffusion Current

 Q. How is diffusion current defined?  In the case of electron diffusion resulting
 The magnitude of the current at any from an electron concentration gradient, a
point is proportional to the slope of the similar relationship applies, giving the
concentration profile, or the electron-current density,
concentration gradient, at that point,

Jn = electron-current density (A/cm2 )

Jp = hole-current density (A/cm2 ) q = magnitude of electron charge
q = magnitude of electron charge Dn = diffusion constant of electrons = 35 cm2/s (intrinsic Si)
Dp = diffusion constant of holes = 12 cm2/s (intrinsic Si) n(x) = electron concentration at point x.
p(x) = hole concentration at point x. Page  25 Page  26

The pn-Junction Operation with Open-Circuit Terminals

 The pn junction structure  Bound Charge:
Physical Structure comprises
  charge of opposite polarity
• p-type semiconductor to free electrons / holes of a given
• n-type semiconductor material

• Metal contact for connection  neutralizes the electrical

 As the pn junction implements
charge of these majority
carriers
the junction diode, its
 does not affect
terminals are labeled anode concentration gradients
Fig. Simplified physical structure of the pn junction
and cathode
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Operation with Open-Circuit Terminals Operation with Open-Circuit Terminals

 p-type material contains majority of
holes
 these holes are neutralized by Q: What happens when a pn-junction is newly formed aka.
equal amount of bound negative when the p-type and n-type semiconductors first touch one
charge another?
 n-type material contains majority of
A: Next slides
free electrons
 these electrons are neutralized

by equal amount of bound

positive charge

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Operation with Open-Circuit Terminals Operation with Open-Circuit Terminals

 Step 1 The p-type and n-type semiconductors are joined at  Step 1A Bound charges are attracted by free electrons and
the junction. holes in the p-type and n-type semiconductors, respectively.
 p-type semiconductor filled with holes  They remain weakly bound to these majority carriers however, they do
 n-type semiconductor filled with free electrons junction not recombine.
p-type n-type

p-type n-type
Bound Charges
Fig. The pn junction with no applied voltage Fig. The pn junction with no applied voltage
(open-circuited terminals). (open-circuited terminals).

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Operation with Open-Circuit Terminals Operation with Open-Circuit Terminals

 Step 2 Diffusion begins. Those free electrons and holes which are  Step 3 The depletion region begins to form as diffusion occurs and
closest to the junction will recombine and, essentially, eliminate one free electrons recombine with holes.
another.  The depletion region is filled with uncovered bound charges who have
p-type n-type
lost the majority carriers to which they were linked.
Depletion Region

Fig. The pn junction with no applied voltage

(open-circuited terminals).
p-type n-type
Fig. The pn junction with no applied voltage
(open-circuited terminals).

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Operation with Open-Circuit Terminals Operation with Open-Circuit Terminals

 Q: Why does diffusion occur even when bound charges
neutralize the electrical attraction of majority carriers to one
another?  Step 4 The uncovered bound charges
 A: Diffusion current, is effected by a gradient in cause a voltage differential across the Depletion Region
E
depletion region. p-type n-type
concentration of majority carriers not an  As diffusion continues, the magnitude
electrical attraction of these particles to one of this barrier voltage (V0) differential
another. grows.
Fig. The pn junction with no applied voltage
(open-circuited terminals).

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Operation with Open-Circuit Terminals Operation with Open-Circuit Terminals

Depletion Region  Step 6 Equilibrium is reached, and Depletion Region
E diffusion ceases, once the magnitudes E
p-type n-type p-type n-type
 Step 5 The barrier voltage (V0) is an of diffusion and drift currents (ID & IS)
electric field whose polarity equal one another resulting in no net
opposes the direction of diffusion flow.
Is Is
current (ID). ID  Once equilibrium is achieved, no net ID
 As the magnitude of V0 increases, the current flow exists i.e.
magnitude of ID decreases. Inet = ID = IS
within the pn-junction while under open-
circuit condition.
Fig. The pn junction with no applied voltage Fig. The pn junction with no applied voltage
(open-circuited terminals). (open-circuited terminals).

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Operation with Open-Circuit Terminals Operation with Open-Circuit Terminals

 pn-junction built-in voltage (V0) is the equilibrium value of barrier
voltage.  Q: Is the depletion region always symmetrical as shown on
where is a thermal voltage given by:
= = 25.8mV @RT
previous slides?
= ln( ) k = Boltzmann’s constant (8.62E-5 eV/k)  A: No.
q = mag of electron charge (1.6E-19 C)
T = temperature in kelvin
 Q: Why?
 Typically NA > ND
 Generally, takes on a value between 0.6 and 0.9V for silicon at
room temperature.  And, because concentration of doping agents (NA, ND) is unequal,
the width of depletion region will differ from side to side.
 This voltage is applied across depletion region, not terminals of
 The depletion region will extend deeper in to the less doped
pn junction.
material, a requirement to uncover the same amount of charge.
 Power cannot be drawn from V0.

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Operation with Biased Terminals Review on pn-junction

 If a voltage is supplied to the outside ends of a pn-crystal, the condition  Composition

is called biasing  The pn junction is composed of two silicon-based
semiconductors, one doped to be p-type and the other n-type.
narrow
 A majority carriers are generated by doping.
o Holes are present on p-side,
n-type p-type n-type p-type
- + - o Free electrons are present on n-side.
+

forward biased pn junction reverse biased pn junction

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Review on pn-junction Review on pn-junction

 Bound Charges  Depletion region

 Charge of majority carriers are neutralized electrically by bound  As these carriers disappear, they release bound charges and
charges. effect a voltage differential V0.

 Diffusion Current ID  Depletion-layer voltage

 Those majority carriers close to the junction will diffuse across,  As diffusion continues, the depletion layer voltage (V0) grows,
resulting in their elimination. making diffusion more difficult and eventually bringing it to halt.

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Review on pn-junction Reading Assignment

 Minority carriers
(Must be covered!)
 Are generated thermally.
Capacitive Effects in the pn Junction
 Free electrons are present on p-side, holes are present on n-side.
 Drift current IS
 The depletion-layer voltage (V0) facilitates the flow of minority
carriers to opposite side.
 Open circuit equilibrium
ID = I S
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End of Chapter 1