10/22/2024

EEE 2103:
Electronic Devices Chapter - 1
-Ebad Zahir

AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY-

BANGLADESH (AIUB)
Semiconductor Diodes
Faculty of Engineering Lecture: Week-1
Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering
Undergraduate Program

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SEMICONDUCTOR
Chapter Objectives
MATERIALS
• Become aware of the general characteristics of three important
semiconductor materials: Si, Ge, GaAs. • Semiconductors are a special class
• Understand conduction using electron and hole theory. of elements having a conductivity
• Be able to describe the difference between n - and p -type materials. between that of a good conductor
and that of an insulator.
• Develop a clear understanding of the basic operation and characteristics of
a diode in the no-bias, forward-bias, and reverse-bias regions. • The three semiconductors used
most frequently in the
• Be able to calculate the DC, AC, and average AC resistance of a diode from construction of electronic devices
the characteristics.
are Ge, Si, and GaAs.
• Understand the impact of an equivalent circuit whether it is ideal or
practical.
• Become familiar with the operation and characteristics of a Zener diode
and light-emitting diode.

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WHAT IS A
MIDDLE GROUND ? SEMI CONDUCTOR?
• The term conductor is applied to any material that will support a  Low resistivity => “conductor”
generous flow of charge when a voltage source of limited magnitude is
applied across its terminals.  High resistivity => “insulator”
 Intermediate resistivity => “semiconductor”

• An insulator is a material that offers a very low level of conductivity Generally, the

under pressure from an applied voltage source. semiconductor material used

in integrated-circuit devices
is crystalline
In recent years, however,
• A semiconductor, therefore, is a material that has a conductivity level non-crystalline
somewhere between the extremes of an insulator and a conductor.
polycrystalline amorphous crystalline semiconductors have become
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commercially very important
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SEMICONDUCTOR MATERIALS

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COVALENT BONDING AND

INTRINSIC MATERIALS

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COVALENT BONDING AND

ENERGY LEVELS
INTRINSIC MATERIALS
• 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 refined to reduce the
number of impurities to a very low
level—essentially as pure as can be
made available through modern
technology.
• Semiconductor materials have a
negative temperature coefficient.

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n-TYPE & p-TYPE

ENERGY LEVELS
MATERIALS
• The farther an electron is from the • A semiconductor material that has been subjected to the doping process is
nucleus, the higher is the energy state, called an extrinsic material.
and any electron that has left its parent
atom has a higher energy state than any • There are two extrinsic materials of immeasureable importance to
electron in the atomic structure. semiconductor device fabrication: n-type and p-type materials.
• An electron in the valence band of • An n -type material is created by introducing impurity elements that have
silicon must absorb more energy than five valence electrons (pentavalent), such as antimony, arsenic, and
one in the valence band of germanium
to become a free carrier. Similarly, an phosphorus.
electron in the valence band of gallium • The p -type material is formed by doping a pure germanium or silicon
arsenide must gain more energy than crystal with impurity atoms having three valence electrons (trivalent). The
one in silicon or germanium to enter the elements most frequently used for this purpose are boron, gallium, and
conduction band.
indium.

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n-TYPE & p-TYPE

DOPING
MATERIALS
• Diffused impurities • Doping is the process of adding very small well-
with five valence controlled amounts of impurities into a pure
electrons are called semiconductor
donor atoms.
• Doping enables the control of the resistivity and
other properties over a wide range of values
• The diffused
impurities with • For silicon, impurities are from columns III and V of
three valence the periodic table
electrons are called
acceptor atoms.

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The alternative way is to create a

DOPING FOR n-TYPE & p-TYPE semiconductor is by adding a dopant
which has a normally empty energy
Doping is a process by which engineers change an level just above the valence band.
insulating material into a semiconductor. The basic
process inserts a small ‘population’ of a foreign Electrons in the valence band hop
element into a crystal lattice of the insulator. For into these new levels, opening a
example we might insert some boron atoms into a population of holes in the valence
lump of pure silicon. band.

It is conventional to call the main material the bulk These dopant atoms are called
and the small number of foreign atoms the dopant. Acceptors
They pick up and hold a fixed negative charge, creating a free population
Electrons donated by the dopant, make the semiconductor n-type of holes to conduct through the valence band.
because the free charge caries we have created are negative (electrons)
and there are no corresponding holes in the valence band. Semiconductors made in this way are called p-type, because conduction
can now take place when the positive hole moves in response to an
The now positively charged donor atoms is unable to move since the applied field.
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DOPING WITH DONORS DOPING WITH ACCEPTORS

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ELECTRON VERSUS ELECTRON VERSUS

HOLE FLOW HOLE FLOW

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MAJORITY AND MINORITY

CARRIERS
• In an n-type material the electron is called the majority
when carrier and the hole the minority carrier.
• In a p-type material the hole is the majority carrier and the
electron is the minority carrier.

when

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 Silicon is a semiconductor material. Pure Note:

Si has relatively high resistivity at room
temperature. The conductivity is a function
of the dopant concentration.
 There are 2 types of mobile charge-
carriers in Si: Doped materials end up with
Conduction electrons are negatively
conductivities of about
charged.
graphite (good conductors are
Holes are positively charged
{absence of electrons}.
like a low value resistor).

 The concentration of conduction N and P type materials have

electrons & holes in a semiconductor can different conductivities.
be affected in several ways:
 by adding special impurity atoms Even in a heavily doped
(dopants) material the dopant is still
 by applying an electric field only present in parts per
 by changing the temperature million levels.
 by irradiation

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SEMICONDUCTOR DIODE

No Applied Bias (VD=0V)

• This region of uncovered positive
and negative ions is called the
depletion region due to the
“depletion” of free carriers in the
region.
• In the absence of an applied bias
across a semiconductor diode, the
net flow of charge in one direction
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is zero.

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SEMICONDUCTOR DIODE

Reverse-Bias Condition (VD<0V)

• The current that exists under
reverse-bias conditions is called
the reverse saturation current
and is represented by IS .

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SEMICONDUCTOR DIODE

Forward-Bias Condition (VD>0V)

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BREAKDOWN REGION

• The maximum reverse-

bias potential that can be
applied before entering the
breakdown region is called
the peak inverse voltage
(referred to simply as the
PIV rating) or the peak
reverse voltage (denoted
the PRV rating).

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Example
DC OR STATIC RESISTANCE
• Determine the DC Resistance levels for the diode of
• The resistance of a diode at a particular operating point is following figure at ID = 2 mA, ID = 20 mA, VD = - 10 V
called the dc or static resistance diode. It can be
determined using equation:

a) At ID = 2 mA , VD = 0.5 V and
thus RD = 250 Ω

RD = VD/ID b) At ID = 20 mA , VD = 0.8 V and

thus RD = 40 Ω

c) At VD = =- 10 V , ID = - IS = -1
µA and thus RD = 10 MΩ
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NON-IDEAL RESISTANCE

DC resistance of
• DC resistance of
reverse-bias region,
forward-bias region
its open-circuit
decrease for higher
equivalent.
currents and voltage.

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Diode characteristic
DYNAMIC RESISTANCE
• Static resistance was found for a DC input.
• For AC, the varying input voltage/current will have an d Tangent line
Qpt
instantaneous or dynamic relationship.
• Thus the specific changes in current and voltage is obtained
using equation:
rd = ∆VD/ ∆ID
rd = ∆VD/ ∆ID
vD

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AVERAGE AC RESISTANCE
TEMPERATURE EFFECTS
Vd
rav  (point to point)
Id
• In the forward-bias region the characteristics of a
silicon diode shift to the left at a rate of 2.5mV per
AC resistance can be
centigrade degree increase in temperature.
determined by picking 2
points on the characteristic • In the reverse-bias region the reverse current of a
curve developed for a silicon diode doubles for every 10°C rise in
particular circuit. temperature.
• The reverse breakdown voltage of a semiconductor
diode will increase or decrease with temperature.
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ZENER DIODE

• A Zener is a diode
operated in reverse bias at
the Peak Inverse Voltage
(PIV) called the Zener
Voltage (VZ).
• Common Zener Voltages:
1.8V to 200V

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DIODE SPECIFICATION SHEET

They include:
1. The Forward Voltage VF
2. The Maximum Forward Current IF
3. The Reverse Saturation Current IR
4. The Reverse Voltage Rating (PIV or PRV or V (BR))
5. The Maximum Power Dissipation Level at a particular temperature.
6. Capacitance levels.
7. Reverse Recovery Time trr
8. Operating Temperature Range.
• Maximum Power dissipated, PDmax = VDID or Pdissipated = (0.7 V)55ID

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