Applied Physics

SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES (UNIT-II)

Dr. Anji Reddy Polu,

Ph.D. (Central Uni.), Postdoc (South Korea)
Assistant Professor, Department of Physics,
BVRIT Hyderabad College of Engineering for Women
Direct & Indirect band gap Semiconductors
 Direct band-gap (DBG) semiconductor
A direct band-gap (DBG) semiconductor is one
in which the maximum energy level of the
valence band aligns with the minimum energy
level of the conduction band with respect to
momentum.
Indirect band-gap (IBG) semiconductor
An Indirect band-gap (IBG) semiconductor is
one in which the maximum energy level of the
valence band and the minimum energy level of
the conduction band are misaligned with
respect to momentum.

In a DBG semiconductor, a direct In case of a IBG semiconductor, due to a

recombination takes place with the release of
the energy equal to the energy difference
between the recombining particles.
relative difference in the momentum, first, the
momentum is conserved by release of energy
and only after the both the momenta align
themselves, a recombination occurs
accompanied with the release of energy.

The probability of a radiative recombination is The probability of a radiative recombination is

high. comparatively low.

The efficiency factor of a DBG semiconductor is The efficiency factor of a IBG semiconductor is
higher. Thus, DBG semiconductors are always lower.
preferred over IBG for making optical sources.

Example, Gallium Arsenide (GaAs). Example, Silicon and Germanium

Application: LED Application: Ordinary P-N Junction Diode

LIGHT EMITTING DIODE
 Light Emitting Diode
A Light Emitting Diode (LED) is a semiconductor P-N
(LED)
junction diode which emits light when it is in forward
biased.
The principle behind LED is electroluminescence.
The process of injecting electrons and holes into the n-
type and p-type materials is known as injection
electroluminescence.
Whiskers are specifically tuned sensory equipment that guide
a cat through
daily functions
 PRINCIPLE
Electrons are charge carriers in a semiconductor and it
absorbs energy when an electric field is applied. The total
energy of the charge carrier electrons increases and hence,
they are excited to the higher energy state.
The excited electrons in the higher energy states stay
there only for a few seconds, and after the mean lifetime
eventually return back to the ground state energy level.
During this process, a spontaneous emission of the
radiation of light takes place. The energy of the emitted
photon is equal to the energy of band gap
------(Eg) of materials,
i.e., (1)

in (1), we
get
where c is the velocity of light and λ, the
 CONSTRUCTION
Al
Light output
SiO2

n
Electrical
contacts
Substrate
 CONSTRUCTION
The typical construction of an LED is shown in Fig.
LED has to be designed and constructed in such a way
that most of the radiative recombinations take place
from the side of the junction nearest to the surface so
that loss due to reabsorption is minimized.
For this, p-n junction layer has to be parallel and closer
to the surface layer.
The LED is constructed on a GaP n-doped substrate. A
thin p-doped GaP layer is grown on the top of this
substrate.
Electrical contacts are made leaving as much of the
upper surface of the p-material uncovered.
The recombination takes place and radiation is
generated between p and n layers i.e. p-n junction.
Since GaP layer is transparent, the radiation escapes
through the top layer.
Although the internal quantum efficiencies of some LED
materials can approach 100 %, the external efficiencies
are much lower.
The main reason is that most of the emitted radiation
strikes the materials interface at angles greater than
critical angle and so lost due to total internal reflection.
There are two ways of improving the efficiency; the first is
to ensure that most rays strike the surface at angles less
than critical angle. This is achieved by shaping the
semiconductor/air interface into a hemisphere. In this the
material is made into a hemispherical dome. More
radiation then strikes the semiconductor/air interface at
less than the critical angle and hence is not lost. This
technique is too difficult and more expensive.
The second technique is to encapsulate the junction in a
WORKING
 WORKING
LED is a forward biased p-n junction. When it is forward
biased suitably, it emits visible light.
During the forward biasing, the charge carriers, namely,
electrons and holes, are injected respectively into the
anode and cathode regions.
The recombination of the charge carriers, namely, the
electrons from the n-side and the holes from the p-side,
takes place at the junction.
During the recombination, the difference in the energy is
given up in the form of heat and light radiation, i.e.,
photons.
The energy of light radiation depends on the strength of
recombination. Thus, the diode current controls electro
luminous efficiency of the LED.
The emitted light is very small in intensity and is of the
order of microampere range.
APPLICATIONS

PDA - Physical Display of

Affection
Solar Cell
Introduction
Principle of Solar Cell
Construction
Construction
Working
Types of Solar Cells
I-V CHARACTERISTICS
✔ The above graph shows the current-voltage ( I-V )
characteristics of a typical silicon PV cell operating under
normal conditions. The power delivered by a solar cell is
the product of current and voltage ( I x V ). If the
multiplication is done, point for point, for all voltages
from short-circuit to open-circuit conditions, the power
curve above is obtained for a given radiation level.

✔ With the solar cell open-circuited, that is not connected to

any load, the current will be at its minimum (zero) and
the voltage across the cell is at its maximum, known as
the solar cells open circuit voltage (Voc). At the other
extreme, when the solar cell is short circuited, that is the
positive and negative leads connected together, the
voltage across the cell is at its minimum (zero) but the
current flowing out of the cell reaches its maximum,
known as the solar cells short circuit current (ISC).
✔ Then the span of the solar cell I-V characteristics curve
ranges from the short circuit current ( Isc ) at zero output
volts, to zero current at the full open circuit voltage ( Voc ).
In other words, the maximum voltage available from a cell
is at open circuit, and the maximum current at closed
circuit. Of course, neither of these two conditions
generates any electrical power, but there must be a point
somewhere in between were the solar cell generates
maximum power.

✔ However, there is one particular combination of current

and voltage for which the power reaches its maximum
value, at Imp and Vmp. In other words, the point at which
the cell generates maximum electrical power and this is
shown at the top right area of the green rectangle. This is
the “maximum power point” or MPP. Therefore the ideal
operation of a photovoltaic cell (or panel) is defined to be
Advantages of Solar Cell
Disadvantages of Solar Cell
Applications of Solar Energy
PIN Photodiode
Introduction
PIN Photodiode
Construction
Working
Characteristics

It is always operated in reverse bias mode. The V-I

characteristic is shown in figure in which reverse
voltages are plotted horizontally in volts and reverse
current is plotted vertically in microamperes.
According to the figure the reverse current is almost
independent from the reverse voltage. When the
illumination is zero then the reverse current is
approximately zero but there is only a small amount of
current is present and this current is called dark current.
Advantages
Disadvantages
 Applications

Photodiodes are also widely used in numerous medical

applications like instruments to analyze samples, detectors
for computed tomography, and also used in blood gas
monitors.
These diodes are much faster & more complex than normal
PN junction diodes and hence are frequently used for lighting
regulation and in optical communications.
These diodes are used in consumer electronics devices like
smoke detectors, compact disc players, and televisions and
remote controls in VCRs.
In other consumer devices like clock radios, camera light
meters, and street lights, photoconductors are more
Avalanche
Photodiode
 Avalanche
Definition Photodiode
: Avalanche photodiode is a
photodetector in which more electron-hole pairs
are generated due to impact ionization.
It is like P-N photodiode or PIN photodiode
where electron-hole pairs are generated due to
absorption of photons but in addition to this
avalanche photodiode uses the impact
ionization principle for increasing magnitude of
photocurrent.
 Photoelectric effect
Principle Impact Ionization
Impact ionization is the process in which one energy
carrier with sufficient high kinetic energy strikes
bounded energy carrier and imparts its energy to it so
that the bounded energy carrier can move freely. This
leads to higher concentration of energy carriers and thus
higher magnitude of current.
Materials
Silicon will detect in the visible and near infrared, with
low multiplication noise.
Germanium (Ge) will detect infrared out to a
wavelength of 1.7 µm, but has high multiplication noise.
Construction
It has four regions N+ region, P region, an
intrinsic layer and P+ region. The N+ and P+
region are heavily doped and the P-type layer is
lightly doped. Its construction can be understood
more clearly with the help of the below diagram.
The main difference of
the avalanche
photodiode to other
forms of photodiode is
that it operates under a
high reverse bias
condition.
This enables avalanche
multiplication of the
Working An avalanche photodiode is a silicon-based
semiconductor containing a p-n junction
consisting of a positively doped p region
and a negatively doped n region
sandwiching an area of neutral charge
termed the depletion region.
These diodes provide gain by the
generation of electron-hole pairs from an
energetic electron that creates an
"avalanche" of electrons in the substrate,
which increases photocurrent several times.
This additional factor is called avalanche
multiplication factor.
Photons entering the diode first pass
through the silicon dioxide layer and then
through the n and p layers before entering
the depletion region where they excite free
When a semiconductor diode has a reverse bias (voltage)
applied and the crystal junction between
the p and n layers is illuminated, then a current will flow
in proportion to the number of photons incident upon
the junction.
Avalanche diodes are very similar in design to the
silicon p-i-n diode, however the depletion layer in an
avalanche photodiode is relatively thin, resulting in a
very steep localized electrical field across the narrow
junction.
In operation, very high reverse-bias voltages (up to 2500
volts) are applied across the device. As the bias voltage is
increased, electrons generated in the p layer continue to
increase in energy as they undergo multiple collisions
with the crystalline silicon lattice. This "avalanche" of
electrons eventually results in electron multiplication.
Characteristics of Avalanche
photo diode
Avalanche photodetector,
current-voltage characteristics
curve with, depicts avalanche
region to shown in the figure.

This allows each of photo-

generated carrier to be
multiplied by avalanche
breakdown. This effect is
known as the avalanche break
down effect.

Resulting internal gain within

the photodiode, which
increases the effective
responsibility of the device.
Advantages

Disadvantages

▪ Avalanche process means that the output is

not linear
Applications
Due to its ability to detect low-level signals it is
used in fiber optic communication Systems.
A properly designed silicon avalanche
photodiode can provide a response time of
about 1ns.
Avalanche photodiodes also used in place of
photomultiplier tubes for many low-light-level
applications.