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6 views

-Lect 1

Uploaded by

AhmedBondok
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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LECTURE #1

Semiconductors

Electronics EC331
1.1. Classifications of Materials

• Materials can be classified in many ways.

• One way of classification is into solid, liquid, or


gas states. The materials in this section are all
classed as solid-state.

• Other methods of classification include: electrical


conductivity, color, density, hardness, and so on.

• Classes of material according to conductivity are:


insulators, semiconductors and conductors.

Electronics EC331
1.2. ELECTRICAL CONDUCTIVITY (σ)

– Conductors: material capable of carrying electric current,


with a generous flow of charge when a limited magnitude of
voltage source is applied across it; e.g. copper

– Insulators: materials with no or very few free charge


carriers (very low conductivity) under the effect of an
applied voltage source; e.g. quartz, plastics

– Semiconductors: materials with conductivity between that


of conductors and insulators; e.g. germanium (Ge), silicon
(Si), Gallium Arsenide (GaAs) .

Electronics EC331
ELECTRICAL CONDUCTIVITY
• some representative resistances (R):
– R = L/A,
 =Resistivity= 1/σ,
L = length, A = cross section area;

Resistance in  (L=1m, diam =1mm)


• aluminum 3.6x10-2
• brass 10.1x10-2
• copper 2.2x10-2
• platinum 12.7x10-2
• silver 2.1x10-2
• carbon 44.5
• germanium 5.7x105
• silicon  6x108
• porcelain 1016 - 1018
• Teflon 1020
Electronics EC331
1.3. Review of Basic Atomic Model

• Atoms are comprised of electrons,


neutrons, and protons.

• Electrons are found orbiting the


nucleus of an atom at specific
intervals, based upon their energy
levels.

• The outermost orbit is the valence


orbit.

Electronics EC331
Energy Levels
• Valence band electrons
are the furthest from
the nucleus and have
higher energy levels
than electrons in lower
orbits.

• The region beyond the


valence band is called
the conduction band.

• Electrons in the
conduction band are
easily made to be free
electrons.
Electronics EC331
ENERGY BANDS IN SOLIDS:
– Classification of solids into three types, according to their
band structure:
• insulators: gap = forbidden region between highest filled
band (valence band) and lowest empty or partly filled band
(conduction band) is very wide, about 3 to 6 eV;

• semiconductors: gap is small - about 0.1 to 1 eV;

• conductors: valence band only partially filled, or (if it is


filled), the next allowed empty band overlaps with it

Electronics EC331
1.4. Semiconductors
• Crystalline solid materials whose resistivities are values
between those of conductors and insulators; e.g. germanium
(Ge), silicon (Si), Gallium Arsenide (GaAs) .

• Good electrical characteristics and feasible fabrication


technology are some reasons why silicon is by far the most
important semiconductor material in use today.

• Compound semiconductor materials such as gallium arsenide


are used in photonic and microwave applications, and
germanium is used for a few special purposes (as it is easily
destroyed by heat).

• Pure semiconductor materials, intrinsic semiconductors, is a


poor conductor of electricity. This means they have very few
charge carriers.
Electronics EC331
Semiconductors
• Silicon and Germanium are electrically neutral; that is,
each has the same number of orbiting electrons as protons.

• Both silicon and germanium have four valence band


electrons, and so they are referred to as tetravalent atoms.
This is an important characteristic of semiconductor atoms.

Electronics EC331
Semiconductor Crystals
• Tetravalent atoms such as silicon, gallium arsenide, and
germanium bond together to form a crystal or crystal
lattice.

• Because of the crystalline structure of semiconductor


materials, valence electrons are shared between atoms.

• This sharing of valence electrons is called covalent


bonding. Covalent bonding makes it more difficult for
materials to move their electrons into the conduction band.

Electronics EC331
Semiconductor Crystal

Electronics EC331
Electron Distribution
• Considering the distribution of electrons at two
temperatures:
– Absolute zero - atoms at their lowest energy level.
– Room temperature - valence electrons have absorbed
enough energy to move into the conduction band.

• Atoms with broken covalent bonds (missing an electron)


have a hole present where the electron was. For every
electron in the conduction band, there is a hole in the valence
band. They are called electron-hole pairs.

• As more energy is applied to a semiconductor, more


electrons will move into the conduction band and current
will flow more easily through the material.
Electronics EC331
Electron Distribution
• Therefore, the resistance of intrinsic semiconductor
materials decreases with increasing temperature.

• This is a negative temperature coefficient.

Electronics EC331
1.4.1. Intrinsic Semiconductor

Electronics EC331
Intrinsic Semiconductors
• In pure, intrinsic, semiconductors free electrons
and holes are created in pairs; therefore the
intrinsic carrier concentration is defined as:
n = p= ni

• For silicon at 300°K,


ni  1.5 X 1010 electrons/cm3
• In equilibrium, more holes means less electrons,
and vice-versa
n.p=ni2 (Law of mass action)
ni increases with temperature

Electronics EC331

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