Lab 1

Diode Characteristics

Purpose
The purpose of this lab is to study the characteristics of the diode. Some of the concepts that will
be investigated are the I-V curve, the switching speed, and the rectification properties. The reverse bias
curve of the Zener diode will also be looked at.

Material and Equipment

Oscilloscope Power Supply
Function Generator Multimeter
1N4004 Diode 1N4148 Diode
Zener Diode
Assorted Resistors

Prelab
Answer the following questions

1. Sketch the I-V characteristics of an ideal rectification diode(2 points)

2. Sketch the I-V characteristics of a real diode assuming that its ON voltage is 0.6V (2 points)
3. Sketch the I-V characteristics of a Zener diode assuming that its turn-on voltage is 0.6V and that its
reverse breakdown voltage is 6V(2 points)
4. In your parts kit, you have been given three diodes. Name them all and how can you identify
them(describe their physical appearance) (3 points)
5. Look up the spec. sheet of the Zener diode in your lab kit. What is the reverse breakdown voltage(3
points)

Solve the following problems. Don’t just write down the answers. Show all the calculations clearly.

1. In figure 1, calculate the current flowing through the resistor (2 points)

2. In figure 2, calculate the current flowing through the diode for the following diode models (2+3+3=8
points)
a) Ideal diode
b) Diode with turn ON voltage of 0.7V and zero ON-resistance
c) Diode with turn ON voltage of 0.7V and 25 Ohms ON resistance
3. In figure3, calculate the current folwing through the Zener diode assuming that its
Reverse breakdown voltage is 6V (8 points)

The problem below is for extra credit for 5 points.

In figure 2, assume that the diode given is a 1N4004. From the data given in the spec sheet, calculate, the
current flowing through the diode. You can access the data sheet from thr following site
http://www.ee.latrobe.edu.au/internal/workshop/store/pdf/1N4004.pdf
Look at the graph that says forward characteristics.
15V 1K
15V 1K

Figure 2
Figure 1

1K

2K
10V

Figure 3
Background
The diode is a device formed from a junction of n-type and p-type semiconductor material. The
lead connected to the p-type material is called the anode and the lead connected to the n-type material is the
cathode. In general, the cathode of a diode is marked by a solid line on the diode.

A node C a th o d e

Figure 1-1: The symbol for a diode compared to an actual diode package.

The primary function of the diode is rectification. When it is forward biased (the higher potential
is connected to the anode lead), it will pass current. When it is reversed biased ( the higher potential is
connected to the cathode lead), current flow is blocked. The characteristic curve for a real diode is seen in
Figure 1-2.
Forward Bias Region

Reverse Bias
Breakdown Region

Reverse Bias Region

Figure 1-2: I-V Curve for a real diode.

When analyzing circuits, the real diode is usually replaced with a simpler model. In the simplest form, the
diode is modeled by a switch (Figure 1-3). The switch is closed when the diode if forward biased and open
when the diode is reversed biased.
 + V -
open V< 0
closed V> 0 (1)

ideal
Figure 1-3: Simple model of an ideal diode.

A more sophisticated model includes a battery to model the forward voltage and a resistor to model the
finite i-v slope (Figure 1-4).

Rr Rr

(3)
Vy Rf + V - Rf
Vy ideal Vy

open V< 0
closed V> 0

Figure 1-4: Simple model of a real diode with a finite turn-on voltage.

This model is easy to implement when analyzing circuits and it includes the important features of a real
diode. This characteristic curve will be investigated as part of this lab. Two characteristics of the diode
which will to be examined are reverse recovery time and reverse bias breakdown. The first, reverse
recovery time, is a result of the fact that while the diode is forward biased, the depletion region is full of
excess carriers. Immediately after the diode is switched to reverse bias, the depletion region is still full of
carriers. Therefore, a large negative current will flow until all of the excess carriers are washed out. As the
carriers are removed, the reverse current decays exponentially to approximately zero. The reverse recovery
time is the time it takes for this to occur.
The other characteristic is reverse bias breakdown. In a normal diode, breakdown can result in
damage to the diode. However, the Zener diode is designed to breakdown. In fact, the breakdown voltage
is set to a desired point through the construction of the device. This effect can be exploited to perform
voltage regulation in power supplies.

Procedure
1) Finding Diode Specifications
Look up the characteristics of the diodes in your kit (also look up the 1N34) using the web. You
will need to go to a manufacturer’s website (ex: Motorola) to get the datasheets. The specifications for the
different kinds of diodes vary. Copy all of the specifications for each diode as well as all of the
specification definitions.
2) Diode I-V Characteristics
The I-V characteristics for a diode can be displayed on an oscilloscope in X-Y mode. A time
varying voltage source must be used in order to trace both the forward and reverse bias characteristics of
the diode. By connecting up the circuit in Figure 1-5, the diode current (Vr/R) can be found by measuring
the voltage across R and the diode voltage can be found by measuring it directly. Thus one of the
oscilloscope probes must be placed across the resistor and the other across the diode. Remember that
channel 1 is the X-axis and channel 2 is the Y-axis. So connect the appropriate channel across the
appropriate device. Considering that the two oscilloscope probes have a common ground, how would you
connect up the scope? Also remember that the probe grounds are physically connected to the ground of the
source through the AC supply ground. How can this problem be solved? Think about it before asking the
TA. You will get extra credit for coming up with a solution on your own.
a) Connect the circuit in Figure 1-5. Use R = 100 ohms and a 1N4004 diode.
b) Use an amplitude of 5V and a frequency of 100Hz for the input. Align the voltage waveforms
across both the resistor and the diode to the center of the oscilloscope screen. If you do not know
how to do this, ask the TA. Once the alignment has been performed, turn on the X-Y mode.
Invert the appropriate channel. The oscilloscope will show you the I-V characteristics of the
diode.
c) Capture the I-V characteristics of the diode to the word document. Be sure to scale the vertical
axis for current (not voltage). Now fill up the table given below. The table

# Diode Voltage Diode Current Characteristic Slope, ∆V/∆I

1 OFF
2 OFF
3 JUST TURNING ON
4 0.6 V
5 0.65 V
6 20mA
7 FULLY ON

3) Zener Diode Characteristics

The Zener diode has the unique property of maintaining a desired reverse bias voltage. This
makes it useful for regulating voltage. One can purchase Zener diodes designed to regulate at practically
any reasonable voltage. In this exercise, you are to the sketch the I-V characteristic of the Zener diode.
a) Connect of the circuit in Figure 1-5. Use R = 100 ohms and a Zener diode.
b) Use an amplitude of 10V and a frequency of 100Hz for the input. Align the voltage waveforms
across both the resistor and the zener to the center of the oscilloscope screen. Once the alignment
has been performed, turn on the X-Y mode. Invert the appropriate channel. The oscilloscope will
show you the I-V characteristics of the zener.
c) Capture the I-V characteristics of the zener to the word document. Fill up the table of zener
characteristcs given below

# voltage current Slope, ∆V/∆I characteristic

1 20mA
2 Full reverse conduction
3 Full reverse conduction
4 6.2/6.0 V
5 off
6 off
7 Just turning ON
8 0.65/0.7 V
9 20mA
10 Fully On

+ Vd -

+
Vin Id
Vout
R
-

Figure 1-5: Circuit for the experiments a-d.

4) Reverse Recovery Time

When the diode is switched from forward to reverse bias, the current does not immediately stop
due to the excess carriers in the depletion region at the time of switching. The reverse recovery time is
measured as the time delay between switching and when the current reaches ten percent of its maximum
reverse value (Figure 1-6).
 Id

.1 x Imax
t

Imax

Trr

Figure 1-6: Graph of reverse recovery time of diode.

a) Use the circuit in figure 1-5. Use a 1N4004 diode. (This may already be in place.) For the input
signal, use a square wave signal. The frequency may have to be adjusted in order to see the
recovery artifact.
b) By measuring the voltage across the resistor, one can measure the diode current. (Remember to
scale it correctly) . Capture the profile of the diode current and paste it onto your word document.
The graph must show the position of the cursors.
c) Measure the reverse recovery time from your graph.

Questions and Requirements for Lab Report

1) Compare the important features of a silicon diode versus a germanium diode. Use diode
specifications for the 1N4004 and the 1N34 in your discussion.
2) Does the slope ∆V/∆I increase or decrease as the current through the diode increases? Is this
expected from theory?
3) Discuss reverse recovery time. Is this predicted by the model for an ideal diode?
4) From your measurements, you calculated the resistance of the reverse bias tail on the Zener
diode. What should this resistance ideally be? What does this finite resistance mean in terms of
the Zener diode’s ability to regulate voltage?
5) How did you solve the common ground problem of the oscilloscope for obtaining the V-I
characteristics in the X-Y mode.
6) The diode I-V characteristics can be best described as
a) Linear
b) Exponential
c) Sinusoidal
d) Quadratic