Special purpose diodes

Light-Emitting Diode (LED)

• A light-emitting diode (LED) is a diode that gives off visible light
when forward biased.
• Light-emitting diodes are not made from silicon or germanium but
are made by using elements like gallium, phosphorus and arsenic.
• By varying the quantities of these elements, it is possible to
produce light of different wavelengths with colours that include
red, green, yellow and blue.
• For example, when a LED is manufactured using gallium arsenide, it
will produce a red light.
• If the LED is made with gallium phosphide, it will produce a green
light.
 Light-Emitting Diode (LED) continued (working)

 When light-emitting diode (LED) is forward biased as

shown in Fig.
 The electrons from the n-type material cross the pn
junction and recombine with holes in the p-type
material, releasing energy in the form of photons.
 free electrons are in the conduction band and at a
higher energy level than the holes in the valence band.
 When recombination takes place, the recombining
electrons release energy in the form of heat and light.
 LED continued
• The wavelength of the light emitted, and hence the color, depends on
the band gap energy of the materials forming the p-n junction.
The emitted photon energy is approximately equal to the band gap energy of
the semiconductor. The following equation relates the wavelength and the
energy band gap. (Planck’s Equation E = hv (photon energy))
hν = Eg
hc/λ= Eg
λ= hc/ Eg
Where h is Plank’s constant, c is the speed of the light and Eg is the energy
band gap Thus, a semiconductor with a 2 eV band-gap em its light at about
620 nm, in the red. A 3 eV band-gap material would emit at 414 nm, in the
violet.
Light Spectrum
Light-Emitting Diode (LED)
Light-Emitting Diode (LED)
Intensity of radiated light is directly proportional to the forward current of LED.
Advantages of LED
(i) Low voltage
(ii) Longer life (more than 20 years)
(iii) Fast on-off switching

Protecting LED against reverse bias

The LEDs have low reverse voltage ratings.
For example, a typical LED may have a maximum
reverse voltage rating of 3V.
Applications of LEDs
(i) As a power indicator.
(ii) Seven-segment display.
 PHOTODIODE

A photodiode is a type of photodetector capable of

converting light into either current or voltage,
depending upon the mode of operation. The common,
traditional solar cell used to generate electric solar
power is a large area application of photodiode.

OPERATION
•A photodiode is
designed to operate
in reverse bias.
• Photoelectric effect.
• Photocurrent.
 Photodiodes continued
• When a photon of sufficient energy strikes the diode, it creates an
electron-hole pair. This mechanism is also known as the inner
photoelectric effect.

• If the absorption occurs in the junction's depletion region, these carriers

are swept from the junction by the built-in electric field of the depletion
region.

• Thus holes move toward the anode, and electrons toward the cathode,
and a photocurrent is produced.
Photo diodes continued
Fig shows the basic photo-diode circuit. The circuit has reverse
biased photo-diode, resistor R and d.c. supply. The operation of
the photodiode is as under :
(i) When no light is incident on the pn junction of photo-diode,
the reverse current Ir is extremely small. This is called dark current.
The resistance of photo-diode with no incident light is called dark resistance
(RR). Dark resistance of photo-diode, RR = Dark current/VR
(ii) When light is incident on the pn junction of the photo-diode, there is transfer
of energy from the incident light (photons) to the atoms in the junction. This will
create more free electrons (and more holes). These additional free electrons will
increase the reverse current.
(iii) As the intensity of light increases, the reverse current IR goes on increasing
till it becomes maximum. This is called saturation current.
 Schottky Barrier Diodes (SBD)
 At low frequency the conventional diodes can be easily turn off by changing its biase from forward to reverse.

 But at high frequency there is noticeable current in the reverse biase. During forward biase it is not possible
for all the carriers in the depletion region to recombine, some carriers exist in the depletion region which are
not recombined.

 Now if the diode is suddenly reverse biased, the carriers in the depletion region can flow in the reverse
direction for some time. Hence there is limitation on the frequency range for which a conventional diode can
be used.

 The time taken by a diode to turn off from its forward biased state is called reverse recovery time. For
frequencies upto 10MHz it is very small but above 10MHz it is large and puts a limit on the use of
conventional diode in such high frequency application.

 The diodes which are specially manufactured to solve this problem of fast switching are called Schottky
diodes(also called Schottky barrier diodes, surface barrier diode or hot carrier diodes).Its construction is
different than the conventional P-N junction diodes
Schottky Barrier Diodes (SBD)
 Construction
 It is a metals semiconductor junction diode with no depletion layer
 It uses a metal (like gold, silver, platinum, tungsten etc) on one side of junction and N type
doped silicon semiconductor on the other side

Operation
 When diode is unbiased, electrons on the N side have lower energy levels
than electrons in the metal
 When diode is forward biased, conduction electrons on the N side region
gain enough energy to cross the junction and enter the metal.
 Since these electrons plunge into the metal with large energy, they are
commonly called as hot carriers