W H SMITH MEMORIAL SCHOOL

CLASS- 12 PROJECT 2024-25

TOPIC:- “Semiconductors”

SUBJECT:- PHYSICS
BY:- HARSH PANDEY
TO:- MR. MANISH RAJ
ROLL NUMBER:-
 CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that HARSH PANDEY has

successfully completed the project file on
SEMICONDUCTORS under my guidance and
supervision. I am satisfied with their initiative and
efforts for the completion of project file as a part of
curriculum of ISC Class XII Examination.

Date :

Place :

Signature of Signature of
Internal Examiner External Examiner
 ACKNOWLEGDEMENT
I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to
everyone who has played a significant role in the successful
completion of my physics project. It is with deep appreciation that I
acknowledge the guidance and support provided by my respected
Physics Teacher, Mr. Manish Raj .His expertise and unwavering
support were instrumental in helping me complete this project within
the specified time frame.

I am equally grateful to the school and the school principal for

providing the necessary resources and creating an environment
conducive to project development. The combined contributions of
these individuals have made this project a reality, and I am truly
thankful for their support.

I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to my parents and family

members for their constant support throughout this project. Their
encouragement and understanding of the subject matter were
invaluable. I would also like to thank my friends for their constant
encouragement and collaborative efforts, which significantly
contributed to making this project a success.
 INTRODUCTION

A semiconductor is a material that conducts electricity between the

levels of a conductor and an insulator. Semiconductors are used in
many electronic components, including diodes, transistors, and
integrated circuits (ICs). They are essential for many electronic
appliances and social infrastructure, and are used in a variety of fields,
including:

 Operating air conditioners

 Improving automobile safety
 Laser treatment in medical care

Semiconductors can be pure elements, such as silicon or

germanium, or compounds such as gallium arsenide or cadmium
selenide. Silicon has been the most commonly used
semiconductor material since the 1950s. Gallium arsenide is the
second most common semiconductor in use today.
Effect of temperature on conductivity of Semiconductor
At 0K, all semiconductors are insulators. The valence band at
absolute zero is completely filled and there are no free electrons
in conduction band. At room temperature the electrons jump to the
conduction band due to the thermal energy. When
the temperature increases, a large number of electrons cross over the
forbidden gap and jump from valence to conduction band. Hence
conductivity of semiconductor increases with temperature.
 ENERGY BAND
In gaseous substances, the arrangement of molecules is spread
apart and are not so close to each other. In liquids, the
molecules are closer to each other. But, in solids, the
molecules are closely arranged together, due to this atom of
molecules tend to move into the orbitals of neighbouring
atoms. Hence, the electron orbitals overlap when atoms come
together.
In solids, several bands of energy levels are formed due to the
intermixing of atoms in solids. We call these set of energy
levels as energy bands.
 Energy Band Theory
According to the theory of Bohr, each shell from an atom
includes a separate quantity of energy at dissimilar levels.
This theory mainly gives details about the communication of
electrons among the inside shell and outside shell. According
to the theory of energy band, the energy bands are classified
into three types which include the following.
 Valance Band
The flow of electrons within the atoms in fixed energy levels
however the energy of the electron in the inner shell is
superior to the outer shell of electrons. The electrons which
are present within the outer shell are named as valance
Electrons.
These electrons include a sequence of energy levels which
form an energy band named as valence band. This band
includes the maximum occupied energy.
  Conduction Band
The valence electrons are attached loosely toward the nucleus
at room temperature. Some of the electrons from valence
electrons will leave the band freely. So these are called free
electrons because they flow toward the neighbouring atoms.
These free electrons will conduct the flow of current within a
conductor which is known as conduction electrons. The band
which includes electrons is named as conduction band and the
occupied energy of this will be the less.
 Forbidden Gap
The forbidden gap is the gap between the conduction band
and the valence band. This band is forbidden one without
energy. Therefore, there is no electron flow in this band. The
flow of electrons from the valence to conduction will pass
through this gap.
If this gap is greater, then the electrons in the valence band are
strongly bound toward the nucleus. At the present, to drive the
electrons out from this band, a little outside force is necessary,
which is equivalent to the forbidden energy gap. In the
following diagram, the two bands, as well as a forbidden gap
is illustrated below. Based on the gap size,
the semiconductors, conductors, and insulators are formed.
INTRINSIC SEMICONDUCTOR
A semiconductor material in its pure form is known
as an intrinsic semiconductor. Thus, the intrinsic
semiconductors are chemically pure, i.e. They are free from
impurities. In case of intrinsic semiconductors, the number of
charge carriers, i.e., holes and electrons are determined by the
properties of the semiconductor material itself instead of the
impurity. Also, the number of free electrons is equal to the
number of holes in the intrinsic semiconductor. The common
examples of the intrinsic semiconductors are germanium (Ge)
and silicon (Si).The extrinsic semiconductors have high
electrical conductivity. The conductivity of extrinsic
semiconductor is dependent on temperature as well as amount
of impurity added. The extrinsic semiconductor conducts at 0
Kelvin temperature.
EXTRINSIC SEMICONDUCTOR
Extrinsic semiconductors are semiconductors that are doped
with specific impurities. The impurity modifies the electrical
properties of the semiconductor and makes it more suitable
for electronic devices such as diodes and transistors.
While adding impurities, a small amount of suitable impurity
is added to pure material, increasing its conductivity by many
times. Extrinsic semiconductors are also called impurity
semiconductors or doped semiconductors. The process of
adding impurities deliberately is termed as doping and the
atoms that are used as an impurity are termed as dopants. The
impurity modifies the electrical properties of the
semiconductor and makes it more suitable for electronic
devices such as diodes and transistors.
The dopant added to the material is chosen such that the
original lattice of the pure semiconductor is not distorted.
Also, the dopants occupy only a few of the sites in the crystal
of the original semiconductor, and it is necessary that the size
of the dopant is nearly equal to the size of the semiconductor
atoms.

N-type Semiconductors
When a tetravalent atom such as Si or Ge is doped with a pentavalent atom, it
occupies the position of an atom in the crystal lattice of the Si atom. The four of
the electrons of the pentavalent atom bond with the four neighbouring silicon
atoms, and the fifth one remains weakly bound to the parent atom. As a result,
the ionization energy required to set the fifth electron free is very low, and the
electrons become free to move in the lattice of the semiconductor. Such
semiconductors are termed as n-type semiconductors.

P-type Semiconductors
When a tetravalent atom such as Si or Ge is doped with a trivalent
impurity such as Al, B, In, etc., the dopant atom has one less electron
than the surrounding atoms of Si or Ge. Thus, the fourth atom of the
tetravalent atom is free, and a hole or vacancy is generated in the
trivalent atom. In such materials, the holes are the charge carriers, and
such semiconductors are termed p-type semiconductors.

Electrical Conduction in Semiconductors

It is well known to us that the conductivity of a material
depends on the concentration of free electrons in it.
Good conductors consist large concentration of free
electrons whereas insulators consist small concentration
of free electrons. These conductors have a high
conductance value (and hence a low resistance value).
The concentration level of the free electron in
semiconductors is in between the values of density of
free electrons in conductor and insulator.
This is why the conductivity of a semiconductor is
moderate—not very high or very low. In
semiconductors, valence electrons are not free like in
metals; they are trapped in bonds between adjacent
atoms. Germanium and silicon are commonly used
semiconductors, and their crystal structures consist of a
repeating three-dimensional unit.
For example, each germanium atom has 32 electrons
orbiting its nucleus.

Each atom in the germanium contributes four valence

electrons to make the covalent bond with four adjacent
germanium atoms in the crystal. So the atoms are
tetravalent. The inert ionic core of the germanium acts
as a positive charge of +4 electronic charges. The
valance electrons in germanium crystal serve to bind
one atom to the next.
Hence, it can be said that the valance electrons are
tightly bounded with the atoms in the crystal. Because
of that, although a germanium atom has four valence
electrons in it germanium crystal as a whole is not an
excellent conductor of electricity. At absolute zero
temperatures a semiconductor crystal behaves just like
an insulator as there are no free carriers of electricity
available.

However, at room temperature (300oK), some covalent

bonds in the crystal break due to available energy,
releasing free electrons and allowing the semiconductor
to conduct electricity to some extent.
The energy needed to break a covalent bond is about
0.72 eV in germanium and 1.1 eV in silicon at room
temperature. When a covalent bond breaks, one electron
leaves the bond, creating a vacant spot called a hole.

The significance of hole in the semiconductor is that

they can also be referred as a carrier of electricity
compared to electrons. The mechanism by which the
holes carry electricity is somewhat different from the
mechanism by which electrons carry electricity.
When there is an incomplete bond in a semiconductor
crystal, a hole exists in the bond. It is a little bit easier
for the electron, to form a bond with neighbourhood
atoms; hence, it leaves its previous position for
occupying the newly created hole nearby. When an
electron moves to fill a hole from its previous position
in the bond, it leaves another new hole behind it.
When the second hole is created, then electron of any
other neighbourhood bond may come out to fill up the
second hole with creating a new hole behind it. Hence,
it can be visualized that as such holes are moving in the
direction opposite to the movement of electrons. In this
way semiconductor conducts electricity with help of
these two types of electricity or charge carriers
(electrons and holes).
From the above explanation if we sincerely think we
can visualize that while a hole moves from one
direction to other direction at the same time electron
moves in just opposite direction of that. It means
whenever holes move in a respective forward direction,
the negative charge moves in the opposite or backward
direction.
Negative charge moves in backward direction imply
that the positive charge was moving in forward
direction. Hence, it can be concluded that the movement
of a hole involves for carrying a positive charge in a
semiconductor crystal. In an ideal semiconductor
crystal number of holes created per unit time is exactly
equal to the number of electrons becomes free during
this time.
If the temperature increases the rate of creation of
electron-hole pair increases and when the temperature
decreases, number electron – hole pairs is reduced due
to recombination of electrons and holes in the crystal.
When one electron-hole pair is created, there are two
charge carriers produced. One is negative charge carrier
associated with the electron and other is positive charge
carrier associated to the hole.
Say the mobility of the hole in the crystal is μh and the
mobility of electron in the same crystal is μe. These
holes and electrons move in opposite direction. The
electrons always tend to move in opposite to the applied
electric field, the current density due to drift of holes is
given by,

The current density due to drift of electrons is given by,

As the drifting of holes contributes current in the same

direction and drifting of electrons provides current in
opposite direction, in both cases, currents are in the
same direction that is in the direction of drifting of
holes. Hence, resultant current due to these both charge
carriers will be arithmetic sum of two currents and
hence resultant current density would be,
Where, n is the magnitude of free electron
concentration, ‘p’ is the magnitude of hole
concentration and σ is the Conductivity of
Semiconductor.
If the semiconductor is ideally pure, then there would
be the same number of free electrons and holes. That
means n = p = ni (say). If the temperature of the
semiconductor increases, the concentration of charge
carriers (electrons and holes) is also increased. Hence,
the conductivity of a semiconductor is increased
accordingly. The relation between temperature and
concentration of charge carrier in a pure or intrinsic
semiconductor is given as

Where, T is the temperature in Kelvin Scale.

From the above equation, it is found that the
concentration of charge carriers in a semiconductor
exponentially increases very rapidly with the increase
of temperature. Here we find that the concentration of
hole and electrons in germanium increases 6% for an
increase of every degree centigrade in temperature.
It is of 8% for silicon. This phenomenon makes a
semiconductor device much sensitive to temperature.
This change of concentration of charge carriers in a
semiconductor due to temperature effects on
characteristics and performance of semiconductor
devices. Hence special care is to be taken to maintain
the temperature within a specified limit during
operation of this type of semiconductor devices.
Although, this prompt sensitivity to variation of
temperature makes the semiconductor useful for many
applications. Many specially made semiconductors are
used as the transducers for measuring temperature.
These devices are known as thermistors.

PN Junction Diode
A PN-junction diode is formed when a p-type semiconductor
is fused to an n-type semiconductor creating a potential
barrier voltage across the diode junction
The PN junction diode consists of a p-region and n-region
separated by a depletion region where charge is stored. The
effect described in the previous tutorial is achieved without
any external voltage being applied to the actual PN junction
resulting in the junction being in a state of equilibrium.
However, if we were to make electrical connections at the
ends of both the N-type and the P-type materials and then
connect them to a battery source, an additional energy source
now exists to overcome the potential barrier.
The effect of adding this additional energy source results in
the free electrons being able to cross the depletion region from
one side to the other. The behaviour of the PN junction with
regards to the potential barrier’s width produces an
asymmetrical conducting two terminal devices, better known
as the PN Junction Diode.
A PN Junction Diode is one of the simplest semiconductor
devices around, and which has the electrical characteristic of
passing current through itself in one direction only. However,
unlike a resistor, a diode does not behave linearly with respect
to the applied voltage. Instead, it has an exponential current-
voltage ( I-V ) relationship and therefore we cannot describe
its operation by simply using an equation such as Ohm’s law.
If a suitable positive voltage (forward bias) is applied between
the two ends of the PN junction, it can supply free electrons
and holes with the extra energy they require to cross the
junction as the width of the depletion layer around the PN
junction is decreased.
By applying a negative voltage (reverse bias) result in the free
charges being pulled away from the junction resulting in the
depletion layer width being increased. This has the effect of
increasing or decreasing the effective resistance of the
junction itself allowing or blocking the flow of current
through the diodes pn-junction.
Then the depletion layer widens with an increase in the
application of a reverse voltage and narrows with an increase
in the application of a forward voltage. This is due to the
differences in the electrical properties on the two sides of the
PN junction resulting in physical changes taking place. One of
the results produces rectification as seen in the PN junction
diodes static I-V (current-voltage) characteristics.
Rectification is shown by an asymmetrical current flow when
the polarity of bias voltage is altered as shown below.
Junction Diode Symbol and Static I-V Characteristics
But before we can use the PN junction as a practical device or
as a rectifying device we need to firstly bias the junction, that
is connect a voltage potential across it. On the voltage axis
above, “Reverse Bias” refers to an external voltage potential
which increases the potential barrier. An external voltage
which decreases the potential barrier is said to act in the
“Forward Bias” direction.
There are two operating regions and three possible “biasing”
conditions for the standard Junction Diode and these are:
 1. Zero Bias – No external voltage potential is applied to
the PN junction diode.
 2. Reverse Bias – The voltage potential is connected
negative, (-ve) to the P-type material and positive, (+ve)
to the N-type material across the diode which has the
effect of Increasing the PN junction diode’s width.
 3. Forward Bias – The voltage potential is connected
positive, (+ve) to the P-type material and negative, (-ve)
to the N-type material across the diode which has the
effect of Decreasing the PN junction diodes width.
Zero Biased Junction Diode
When a diode is connected in a Zero Bias condition, no
external potential energy is applied to the PN junction.
However if the diodes terminals are shorted together, a few
holes (majority carriers) in the P-type material with enough
energy to overcome the potential barrier will move across the
junction against this barrier potential. This is known as the
“Forward Current” and is referenced as IF
Likewise, holes generated in the N-type material (minority
carriers), find this situation favourable and move across the
junction in the opposite direction. This is known as the
“Reverse Current” and is referenced as IR. This transfer of
electrons and holes back and forth across the PN junction is
known as diffusion, as shown below.
Zero Biased PN Junction Diode

The potential barrier that now exists discourages the diffusion

of any more majority carriers across the junction. However,
the potential barrier helps minority carriers (few free electrons
in the P-region and few holes in the N-region) to drift across
the junction.
Then an “Equilibrium” or balance will be established when
the majority carriers are equal and both moving in opposite
directions, so that the net result is zero current flowing in the
circuit. When this occurs the junction is said to be in a state of
“Dynamic Equilibrium“.
The minority carriers are constantly generated due to thermal
energy so this state of equilibrium can be broken by raising
the temperature of the PN junction causing an increase in the
generation of minority carriers, thereby resulting in an
increase in leakage current but an electric current cannot flow
since no circuit has been connected to the PN junction.
Reverse Biased PN Junction Diode
When a diode is connected in a Reverse Bias condition, a
positive voltage is applied to the N-type material and a
negative voltage is applied to the P-type material.
The positive voltage applied to the N-type material attracts
electrons towards the positive electrode and away from the
junction, while the holes in the P-type end are also attracted
away from the junction towards the negative electrode.
The net result is that the depletion layer grows wider due to a
lack of electrons and holes and presents a high impedance
path, almost an insulator and a high potential barrier is created
across the junction thus preventing current from flowing
through the semiconductor material.
Increase in the Depletion Layer due to Reverse Bias
This condition represents a high resistance value to the PN
junction and practically zero current flows through the
junction diode with an increase in bias voltage. However, a
very small reverse leakage current does flow through the
junction which can normally be measured in micro-amperes,
( μA ).
One final point, if the reverse bias voltage Vr applied to the
diode is increased to a sufficiently high enough value, it will
cause the diode’s PN junction to overheat and fail due to the
avalanche effect around the junction. This may cause the
diode to become shorted and will result in the flow of
maximum circuit current, and this shown as a step downward
slope in the reverse static characteristics curve below.
Reverse Characteristics Curve for a Junction Diode
Sometimes this avalanche effect has practical applications in
voltage stabilising circuits where a series limiting resistor is
used with the diode to limit this reverse breakdown current to
a preset maximum value thereby producing a fixed voltage
output across the diode. These types of diodes are commonly
known as Zener Diodes and are discussed in a later tutorial.
Forward Biased PN Junction Diode
When a diode is connected in a Forward Bias condition, a
negative voltage is applied to the N-type material and a
positive voltage is applied to the P-type material. If this
external voltage becomes greater than the value of the
potential barrier, approx. 0.7 volts for silicon and 0.3 volts for
germanium, the potential barriers opposition will be overcome
and current will start to flow.
This is because the negative voltage pushes or repels electrons
towards the junction giving them the energy to cross over and
combine with the holes being pushed in the opposite direction
towards the junction by the positive voltage. This results in a
characteristics curve of zero current flowing up to this voltage
point, called the “knee” on the static curves and then a high
current flow through the diode with little increase in the
external voltage as shown below.
Forward Characteristics Curve for a Junction Diode

The application of a forward biasing voltage on the junction

diode results in the depletion layer becoming very thin and
narrow which represents a low impedance path through the
junction thereby allowing high currents to flow. The point at
which this sudden increase in current takes place is
represented on the static I-V characteristics curve above as the
“knee” point.
Reduction in the Depletion Layer due to Forward Bias

This condition represents the low resistance path through the

PN junction allowing very large currents to flow through the
diode with only a small increase in bias voltage. The actual
potential difference across the junction or diode is kept
constant by the action of the depletion layer at approximately
0.3v for germanium and approximately 0.7v for silicon
junction diodes.
Since the diode can conduct “infinite” current above this knee
point as it effectively becomes a short circuit, therefore
resistors are used in series with the diode to limit its current
flow. Exceeding its maximum forward current specification
causes the device to dissipate more power in the form of heat
than it was designed for resulting in a very quick failure of the
device
 PROJECT
“To construct a full wave rectifier and show that that
Alternating Current is rectified into a Direct Current”
 Introduction
A full wave rectifier is a device which is used to rectify
all the alternating current components in an alternating
supply and make it purely a direct current. The two
alternating halves of an alternation current are rectified
in a full wave rectifier which is an advantage over a half
wave rectifier. Most electronic devices cannot
withstand very high voltage or alternating current due to
its intense high power. The use of batteries
in all devices is not practical as their replacement and
durability is a huge problem as the device has to be
dismantled each time for such a replacement. So,
these rectifiers are used in most of the electronic
devices like TV’s, Radios, Chargers, and Lightings etc.
There are two types
of Rectifiers:
1. Full- Wave
Rectifier
Materials required in the construction

 Connecting wires
 A plug
 Single lead wire - 2m
 3 nuts & Bolts 2 to 3cm length
 Circuit board
 A Transformer
 A capacitor
 A Resistor (1 KΩ)
 P-N junction diode
 A LED
 Insulation tape, Blades, soldering wax, soldering
lead, soldering iron &sand paper.
 AIM
“To construct a Half-wave rectifier and
to determine the current
by measuring voltage and resistance
using it”

WORKING:
Let us understand how a half-wave rectifier transforms
AC into DC.
A half-wave rectifier is an electronic
circuit that converts alternating
current (AC) into direct current
(DC). It utilizes a diode, a
semiconductor device that allows
current to flow in only one
direction.
Here's a step-by-step breakdown:
1. During the Positive Half-
Cycle:
o The AC input voltage is
positive.
o The diode is forward-biased,
allowing current to flow
through it and the load
resistor.
o The output across the resistor
is a positive voltage.
2. During the Negative Half-
Cycle:
o The AC input voltage is
negative.
o The diode is reverse-biased,
blocking the flow of current.
 o No current flows through the
load resistor, and the output
voltage is zero.

Visual Representation:

Halfwave rectifier circuit diagram

and its input and output waveforms
Key Points:
 Rectification: The process of
converting AC to DC is called
rectification.
 Diode: The diode is the key
component that allows
unidirectional current flow.
 Output Waveform: The output
 waveform of a half-wave rectifier
is a pulsating DC voltage.
 Efficiency: Half-wave rectifiers
are not very efficient due to the
loss of half the input power
during the negative half-cycle.
Applications:
Half-wave rectifiers have various
applications, including:
 Power Supplies: They are used in
simple power supplies for low-
power devices.
 Battery Chargers: They can be
used to charge batteries,
although more efficient full-wave
rectifiers are often preferred.
 Signal Demodulation: In some
communication systems, they
are used to demodulate signals.

Procedure:
Circuit Diagram:
Halfwave rectifier circuit diagram
1. Circuit Setup:
o Assemble the circuit on the breadboard

according to the diagram.

o Connect the primary winding of the

transformer to the AC power supply.

o Connect the secondary winding of the

transformer to the diode's anode.

o Connect the cathode of the diode to one end

of the resistor.
o Connect the other end of the resistor to the

ground.
2. Observation and Measurement:
o Connect the mustimeter in voltmeter mode

across the resistor (load).

o Connect the multimixer in ammeter mode

in series with the resistor.

o Turn on the AC power supply.

3. Data Collection:
o Record the voltage across the resistor (V_R)

and the current flowing through it (I_R).

o Calculate the power dissipated in the

resistor using the formula: P = V_R * I_R.

4. Analysis:
o Observe the output waveform on an

oscilloscope (if available). You should see a

pulsating DC waveform.
 o Calculate the peak output voltage (V_peak)
and the average output voltage (V_avg).
o Calculate the rectification efficiency, which
is the ratio of the DC power output to the
AC power input.

Observations
RESISTENCE (ohm) VOLT(V)
1 0.7
2 1.1
3 1.4
4 1.6
5 1.8

Mean , v = (0.7 + 1.1 + 1.4 + 1.6 + 1.8) / 5 = 1.32 V

Current , I = v/R = 1.32 / 3 = 0.264Ampere.

RESULT:
The average current produced by the Half-wave rectifier = 0.264
Ampere

Mean , R = (1+2+3+4+5) / 5 = 3 ohm

Precautions:
 Always use a transformer to step down the AC
voltage to a safe level.
  Be careful when handling the transformer and
power supply, especially if they are connected to
the mains power.
 Ensure that the diode is connected in the correct
direction.
 Use a multimixer with appropriate settings to
avoid damage.

Conclusion:
By constructing and analysing the half-wave
rectifier circuit, we were able to:
  Understand the basic principle of rectification.
 Observe the conversion of AC to pulsating DC.
 Calculate the output voltage and current.
 Evaluate the efficiency of the rectification
process.
This experiment provides a hands-on approach to
learning about electronic circuits and their
applications in practical devices.

Bibliography
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Main_Page
2. Google
Images
3. NCERT Physics Class –
12
4. https://byjus.com/physics/half-wave-rectifier/
5. http://www.physics-and-radio electronics.com/electronic-
devices-and
6. http://www.electronics tutorials.ws/diode/diode_5.html
7. http://www.circuitstoday.com/half-wave rectifier