Physics Grade 10 unit 5 short note

What Are Semiconductors?

Semiconductors are materials which have a conductivity between conductors (generally metals)
and non-conductors or insulators (such as ceramics). Semiconductors can be compounds, such as
gallium arsenide, or pure elements, such as germanium or silicon.

Holes and electrons are the types of charge carriers accountable for the flow of current in
semiconductors. Holes (valence electrons) are the positively charged electric charge carrier,
whereas electrons are the negatively charged particles. Both electrons and holes are equal in
magnitude but opposite in polarity.

Mobility of Electrons and Holes

In a semiconductor, the mobility of electrons is higher than that of the holes. It is mainly because
of their different band structures and scattering mechanisms.

Types of Semiconductors

Semiconductors can be classified as

 Intrinsic Semiconductor
 Extrinsic Semiconductor

Intrinsic Semiconductor

An intrinsic type of semiconductor material is made to be very pure chemically. It is made up of

only a single type of element.

Germanium (Ge) and silicon (Si) are the most

common types of intrinsic semiconductor
elements. They have four valence electrons
(tetravalent). They are bound to the atom by a
covalent bond at absolute zero temperature.

When the temperature rises due to collisions, few

electrons are unbounded and become free to
move through the lattice, thus creating an absence
in its original position (hole). These free electrons
and holes contribute to the conduction of electricity in the semiconductor. The negative and
positive charge carriers are equal in number.
Extrinsic Semiconductor

The conductivity of semiconductors can be greatly improved by introducing a small number of

suitable replacement atoms called IMPURITIES. The process of adding impurity atoms to the pure
semiconductor is called DOPING. Usually, only 1 atom in 10 7 is replaced by a dopant atom in the
doped semiconductor. An extrinsic semiconductor can be further classified into

 N-type Semiconductor
 P-type Semiconducto

N-Type Semiconductor

 nh >> ne

 Majority – Electrons and Minority – Holes

When a pure semiconductor (silicon or

germanium) is doped by pentavalent impurity (P,
As, Sb, Bi), then four electrons out of five
valence electrons bond with the four electrons
of Ge or Si.

The fifth electron of the dopant is set free. Thus,

the impurity atom donates a free electron for
conduction in the lattice and is called a “Donar“.

As conduction is due to a large number of free

electrons, the electrons in the n-type
semiconductor are the MAJORITY CARRIERS, and
holes are the MINORITY CARRIERS.

P-Type Semiconductor

 nh >> ne
 Majority – Holes and Minority – Electrons

When a pure semiconductor is doped with a trivalent impurity (B, Al, In, Ga), then the three
valence electrons of the impurity bond with three of the four valence electrons of the
semiconductor.

This leaves an absence of electron (hole) in the impurity. These impurity atoms which are ready to
accept bonded electrons are called “Acceptors“.

As conduction is due to a large number of holes, the holes in the p-type semiconductor are
MAJORITY CARRIERS, and electrons are MINORITY CARRIERS.
Intrinsic Semiconductor Extrinsic Semiconductor
Pure semiconductor Impure semiconductor
The density of electrons is equal to the The density of electrons is not equal to the density of
density of holes holes
Electrical conductivity is low Electrical conductivity is high
Dependence on temperature, as well as on the
Dependence on temperature only
amount of impurity
No impurities Trivalent impurity and pentavalent impurity

Semiconductors are materials whose conductivity lies between conductors and insulators. Semiconductors
are classified as intrinsic semiconductors and extrinsic semiconductors. Extrinsic semiconductors are
further classified as N-type and P-type semiconductors.

The P-N junction is formed between the p-type and the n-type semiconductors.

A P-N junction is an interface or a boundary between two semiconductor material types, namely the p-type
and the n-type, inside a semiconductor.

the P-N junction is created by the method of doping. The p-side or the positive side of the semiconductor
has an excess of holes, and the n-side or the negative side has an excess of electrons.

Biasing Conditions for the P-N Junction Diode

There are two operating regions in the P-N junction diode:

 P-type
 N-type

There are three biasing conditions for the P-N junction diode, and this is based on the voltage
applied:

 Forward bias: The positive terminal of the voltage potential is connected to the p-type
while the negative terminal is connected to the n-type.
 Reverse bias: The negative terminal of the voltage potential is connected to the p-type and
the positive is connected to the n-type.

Forward Bias
When the p-type is connected to the battery’s positive terminal and the n-type to the negative terminal,
then the P-N junction is said to be forward-biased.
The flow of electrons from the n-side towards the
p-side of the junction takes place when there is an
increase in the voltage. Similarly, the flow of holes
from the p-side towards the n-side of the junction
takes place along with the increase in the voltage.
The depletion region’s resistance becomes negligible when the applied voltage is large. when the voltage is
0.7 V and for germanium diodes, when the voltage is 0.3 V, the potential barriers decrease, and there is a
flow of current.

Reverse Bias
When the p-type is connected to the battery’s negative terminal and the n-type is connected to the
positive side, the P-N junction is reverse biased. The depletion region becomes more resistive and thicker if
the applied voltage becomes larger.

When the applied voltage is increased, the minority

charges will have increased kinetic energy which affects
the majority charges. This is the stage when the diode
breaks down. This may also destroy the diode.

V-I Characteristics of P-N Junction Diode

Rectification using PN junction diode

A rectifier is an electronic device that converts an alternating current into a direct current by using one or
more P-N junction diodes. A diode behaves as a one-way valve that allows current to flow in a single
direction. This process is known as rectification.

Half Wave Rectifier

Half-wave rectifiers transform AC voltage to DC voltage. A halfwave rectifier circuit uses only one
diode for the transformation. A halfwave rectifier is defined as a type of rectifier that allows only
one-half cycle of an AC voltage waveform to pass while blocking the other half cycle.

Full Wave Rectifiers

A full wave rectifier is defined as a rectifier that converts the complete cycle of alternating current
into pulsating DC.

A transistor is made of semiconductor and there are various types of transistors depending on their
characteristics and has their advantages and disadvantages.
Bipolar Junction Transistor (BJT)

These are current-controlled devices and are of two types NPN and PNP. In NPN, the majority of
the current is carried by electrons. In PNP, the majority of the current is carried by holes.

A bipolar junction transistor is a three-terminal semiconductor device that consists of two p-n junctions
which are able to amplify or magnify a signal. It is a current controlled device. The three terminals of the
BJT are the base, the collector, and the emitter.

Construction of Bipolar Junction Transistor

BJT is a semiconductor device that is constructed with 3 doped semiconductor Regions i.e. Base,
Collector & Emitter separated by 2 p-n Junctions.

Bipolar transistors are manufactured in two types, PNP and NPN, and are available as separate
components, usually in large quantities. The prime use or function of this type of transistor is to
amplify current. This makes them useful as switches or amplifiers. They have a wide application in
electronic devices like mobile phones, televisions, radio transmitters, and industrial control.

Operation of Bipolar Junction Transistor

There are three operating regions of a bipolar junction transistor:

 Active region: The region in which the transistors operate as an amplifier.

 Saturation region: The region in which the transistor is fully on and operates as a switch such that
collector current is equal to the saturation current.
 Cut-off region: The region in which the transistor is fully off and collector current is equal to zero.

Types of Bipolar Junction Transistor

There are two types of bipolar junction transistors:

 PNP bipolar junction transistor

 NPN bipolar junction transistor

PNP BJT

In PNP BJT, the n-type semiconductor is sandwiched between the two p-type semiconductors. The
two p-type semiconductors act as emitter and collector respectively while the n-type
semiconductor acts as a base.

The current enters the transistor through the emitter such that the emitter-base junction is forward biased
and the collector-base junction is reverse biased.
NPN BJT

In NPN BJT, p-type semiconductor is sandwiched between the two n-type semiconductors. The
two n-type semiconductors act as emitter and collector respectively while the p-type
semiconductor acts as a base.

Current entering the emitter, base, and collector has the sign convention of positive while the current that
leaves the transistor has the sign convention of negative.

Configuration of Bipolar Junction Transistors

Since a Bipolar Junction Transistor is a three-terminal device, there are three ways to connect it
within an electric circuit while one terminal is the same for both output and input. Every method
of connection responds differently to the input signals within a circuit.

 Common Emitter Configuration – has both voltage and current gain

 The common Collector Configuration – has no voltage gain but has a current gain
 The common base configuration – has no current gain but has a voltage gain

logic gate (AND, OR, NOT, NAND & NOR)

A logic gate is a device that acts as a building block for digital circuits. They perform basic logical functions
that are fundamental to digital circuits. Most electronic devices we use today will have some form of logic
gates in them.

Logic gates are based on Boolean algebra. At any given moment, every terminal is in one of the
two binary conditions, false or true. False represents 0, and true represents 1.

Basic logic gates

There are seven basic logic gates: AND, OR, NOT, NAND, NOR,