ELECTRONICS DEVICES

AND CIRCUIT THEORY

CHAPTER 1
SEMICONDUCTOR DIODES

Presentation by: Cristy Mae U. Villanueva

 1.2 SEMICONDUCTOR MATERIALS: Ge, Si, AND GaAs
1.3 COVALENT BONDING AND INTRINSIC MATERIALS
1.4 ENERGY LEVELS
1.5 n-TYPE AND p-TYPE MATERIALS
CONTENTS
1.6 SEMICONDUCTOR DIODE
1.7 IDEAL VERSUS PRACTICAL
1.8 RESISTANCE LEVELS
1.9 DIODE EQUIVALENT CIRCUITS
1.2 SEMICONDUCTOR MATERIALS: Ge, Si, AND GaAs
Semiconductors are a special class of elements having a
conductivity between that of a good conductor and that of an
insulator.
• They fall into two classes : single crystal and compound

The three semiconductors used most frequently in the

construction of electronic devices are Ge, Si, and GaAs.
1.3 COVALENT BONDING AND INTRINSIC MATERIALS
To fully appreciate why Si, Ge, and GaAs are the semiconductors
of choice for the electronics industry requires some understanding of
the atomic structure of each and how the atoms are bound together
to form a crystalline structure.
The fundamental components of an atom are the electron,
proton, and neutron. In the lattice structure, neutrons and protons
form the nucleus and electrons appear in fixed orbits around the
nucleus. The Bohr model for the three materials is provided in Fig.
1.3
FIG. 1.3 Atomic structure of (a) silicon; (b)
germanium; and (c) gallium and arsenic.
FIG. 1.4 Covalent bonding of the silicon atom. FIG. 1.5 Covalent bonding of the GaAs crystal.

This bonding of atoms, strengthened by the sharing of electrons, is

called covalent bonding.
The term intrinsic is applied to any semiconductor material that has been
carefully ENERGY LEVELS 5 refined to reduce the number of impurities to a very
low level—essentially as pure as can be made available through modern
technology.
1.4 ENERGY LEVELS

The farther an electron is

from the nucleus, the
higher is the energy state.
An electron in the valence band of silicon must absorb more energy than one in the valence band of
germanium to become a free carrier. [free carriers are free electrons due only to external causes such as
applied electric fields established by voltage sources or potential difference.
1.5 n-TYPE AND p-TYPE MATERIALS
• n-Type materials are created by adding elements with
five valence electrons such as antimony, arsenic, and
phosphorous.
• There is a fifth electron due to the (Sb) atom that is
relatively free to move in the n-Type material.

FIG. 1.7 Antimony impurity

FIG. 1.8 Effect of donor impurities on the energy band structure.
in n-type material
The free electrons due to the added atoms have higher energy
levels and require less energy to move to conduction band.
1.5 n-TYPE AND p-TYPE MATERIALS
• p-Type materials are created by adding atoms with
three valence electrons such as boron, gallium, and
indium.
• In this case, an insufficient number of electrons to
complete the covalent bonds.
• The resulting vacancy is called a “hole” represented
by small circle or plus sign indicating absence of a
negative charge.
• The atoms (in this case boron(B)) are called acceptor
FIG. 1.9 Boron impurity in p-type
atoms.
material
 Majority and Minority carriers

Majority Carriers
 The majority carriers in n-type materials are electrons.
 The majority carriers in p-type materials are holes.
Minority Carriers
 The minority carriers in n-type materials are holes.
 The minority carriers in p-type materials are electrons.
 FIG. 1.11 (a) n-type material; (b) p-type material.

One end of a silicon or germanium crystal can be doped as a p-type material and the other
end as an n-type material.

The result is a p-n junction.

1.6 SEMICONDUCTOR DIODE
• At the p-n junction, the excess conduction-
band electrons on the n-type side are
attracted to the valence-band holes on the
p-type side.

• The electrons in the n-type material migrate

across the junction to the p-type material
(electron flow).

• The electron migration results in a negative

charge on the p-type side of the junction
and a positive charge on the n-type side of
the junction.

• The result is the formation of a depletion

region around the junction.
 Diodes

The diode is a 2-terminal device.

A diode ideally conducts in only one direction.

 Diode Operating Conditions
1. No Bias

• No external voltage is applied:

VD = 0 V

• No current is flowing:

ID = 0 A

• Only a modest depletion region exists

 Diode Operating Conditions

2. Reverse Bias
• External voltage is applied across the
p-n junction in the opposite polarity
of the p- and n-type materials.

• The reverse voltage causes the depletion region to

widen.
• The electrons in the n-type material are attracted
toward the positive
terminal of the voltage source.
• The holes in the p-type material are
attracted toward the negative
terminal of the voltage source.
 Diode Operating Conditions

3. Forward Bias
• External voltage is applied across the
p-n junction in the same polarity as
the p- and n-type materials.

• The forward voltage causes the depletion region to

narrow.
• The electrons and holes are pushed toward the p-n
junction.
• The electrons and holes have sufficient energy to
cross the p-n junction.
 Zener Region

The Zener region is in the diode’s reverse-bias region.

At some point the reverse bias voltage is so large the
diode breaks down and the reverse current increases
dramatically.
• The maximum reverse voltage that won’t take a
diode into the zener region is called the peak inverse
voltage or peak reverse voltage.
• The voltage that causes a diode to enter the zener
region of operation is called the zener voltage (Vz).
The point at which the diode changes from no-bias condition to forward-
bias condition occurs when the electrons and holes are given sufficient
energy to cross the p-n junction. This energy comes from the external
voltage applied across the diode. Bias Voltage The forward bias voltage
required for a:
• gallium arsenide diode ≅ 1.2 V
• silicon diode ≅ 0.7 V
• germanium diode ≅ 0.3 V
 Temperature Effects
As temperature increases it adds energy to the diode.

• It reduces the required forward bias voltage for forward bias conduction.

• It increases the amount of reverse current in the reverse bias condition.

• It increases maximum reverse bias avalanche voltage.

Germanium diodes are more sensitive to temperature variations than silicon or

gallium arsenide diodes.

1.7 IDEAL VERSUS PRACTICAL

FIG. 1.21 Ideal semiconductor diode: (a)

forwardbiased; (b) reverse-biased.

FIG. 1.22 Ideal versus actual

semiconductor characteristics.
1.8 RESISTANCE LEVELS

DC (Static) Resistance

For a specific applied DC voltage VD, the diode has a specific Current ID, and a specific

Resistance RD.

FIG. 1.23 Determining the dc resistance of

a diode at a particular operating point.
1.8 RESISTANCE LEVELS

AC (Dynamic) Resistance

In the forward bias region:

• The resistance depends on the amount of current (ID) in the diode.

• The voltage across the diode is fairly constant (26 mV for 25°C).
• rB ranges from a typical 0.1 Ω for high power devices to 2 Ω for low power, general

purpose diodes. In some cases rB can be ignored.

In the reverse bias region:

The resistance is effectively infinite. The diode acts like an open.

1.8 RESISTANCE LEVELS

Average AC Resistance

AC resistance can be calculated using the

current and voltage values for two points
on the diode characteristic curve.

FIG. 1.28 Determining the average ac

resistance between indicated limits.
1.9 DIODE EQUIVALENT CIRCUITS