Chapter 1 Semiconductor

Fundamentals
1
Electronic Materials
The goal of electronic materials is to generate
and control the flow of an electrical current.
Electronic materials include:
1. Conductors: have low resistance which allows
electrical current flow
2. Insulators: have high resistance which
suppresses electrical current flow (no current
flow)
3. Semiconductors: can allow or suppress
electrical current flow
2
Conductors
Good conductors have low resistance so
electrons flow through them with ease.
Best element conductors include:
Copper, silver, gold, aluminum, & nickel
Alloys are also good conductors:
Brass & steel
3
Conductor Atomic Structure
The atomic structure of
good conductors usually
includes only one electron
in their outer shell.
It is called a valence electron.
It is easily striped from the
atom, producing current
flow.
Copper
Atom
4
Insulators
Insulators have a high resistance so current
does not flow in them.
Good insulators include:
Glass, ceramic, plastics, & wood
The atoms are tightly bound to one another so
electrons are difficult to strip away for current
flow.
5
Insulator Atomic Structure
The atomic structure of
insulator usually includes
seven electron in their
outer shell.
It is very pack thus current
cant flow across the
materials
6
Semiconductors
Semiconductors are materials that essentially can
be conditioned to act as good conductors, or
good insulators, or any thing in between.
Common elements such as carbon, silicon, and
germanium are semiconductors.
Silicon is the best and most widely used
semiconductor.
7
Semiconductor Valence Orbit
The main characteristic
of a semiconductor
element is that it has
four electrons in its
outer or valence orbit.
8
Electron Orbits
Orbit
Number
Maximum
Electrons
1 2
2
3
4
5
6
Valence
Orbit
2
72
32
8
Orbits closest to the nucleus fill first
Electricity at the Atomic Level
18
50
8
9
How many electrons are in
the valence orbit?
Pictorial Representation
Copper
Cu
29
Is copper a conductor?
Why?
Example: Copper
10
How many electrons are in the valence orbit?
Is Sulfur a conductor or insulator?
Why?
Pictorial Representation
Sulfur
S
16
Example: Sulfur
11
Exercise
12
Using periodic table, determine the types of
material for:
i) Calcium
ii) Bismuth
iii) Cobalt
iv) Antimony
Justify your selection

13
SEMICONDUCTOR MATERIAL
Semiconductors are solid materials, either non
metallic compounds, which allow electrons to
pass through them so that they conduct electricity
in much the same way as a metal.

Atoms with fewer than 4 valence electrons are
good conductors.
Atoms with more than 4 valence electrons are an
insulator.
Atoms with four valence electrons are
semiconductors.

14
Exercise
15
Material

Parameters
Conductor Insulator Semiconductor
Resistance Value

Conductivity Level

Valence Electron

Examples

Fill in the blanks.
Cont.
2 types of Semiconductor Material
INTRINSIC SEMICONDUCTOR
- A pure semiconductor
- Pure semiconductors, by themselves, are not
particularly useful
- No free electrons are available since all the covalent
bonds are complete.
- Behaves like a insulator.
- Resistance of a semiconductor decreases with increase
in temperature.
EXTRINSIC SEMICONDUCTOR
- The impure semiconductor
- Impurity semiconductor

16
DOPING
process of adding impurity to a semiconductor to make it
extrinsic semiconductor
increase the conductivity of a semiconductor
Intrinsic Semiconductor + IMPURITY = Extrinsic
Semiconductor
IMPURITY = DOPING AGENT
2 types of Doping Agent
- Pentavalent atom having five valence electrons (arsenic, antimony,
phosphorous). These atoms are called donor atoms.
- Trivalent atoms having three valence electrons (gallium, aluminum,
boron). These atoms are called acceptor atoms.

17
N-type and P-type Material
Intrinsic Semiconductor + Pentavelent Atom
= N-type Material

Intrinsic Semiconductor + Trivalent Atom =
P-type Semiconductor


18
Majority and Minority Carrier
P-type
- holes are majority carriers
- they are positively charged materials (++++)
N-type:
- electrons are majority charge carriers
- they are negatively charged materials (-----)
19
P-N junction
Materials
P-type material N-type material
Material doped with acceptor

Material has high POSITIVE
charge (holes) concentration

Majority Carrier POSITIVE
(immoveable)
Minority Carrier NEGATIVE
(free)
Material doped with donor

Material has high NEGATIVE
charge (electrons) concentration

Majority Carrier NEGATIVE
(immoveable)
Minority Carrier POSITIVE
(free)

P-N junction formation
Happen when both materials are in close contact.




Electrons and holes (minority carrier) will move to p-n
junction because different types of charge will attract
to each other
This will forms a dipole charge layer called depletion
layer
Thus, there is a built-in voltage at the layer

P-N junction current-voltage
characteristics
According to Current Continuity Law (CCL) the
current can only flow if all the charges move
forming a closed loop with a proper polarity of
supply.

P-N junction current-voltage
characteristics
From the figure, negative terminal are connected to the P-type
material and positive terminal are connected to N-type material.

What happen?
- increase the minority carrier
- width of the DL will increase and the majority carrier of the
material will demolish which will increase the built in voltage

P-N junction current-voltage
characteristics
From the figure, negative terminal are connected to the N-type
material and positive terminal are connected to P-type material.

What happen?
- increase the majority carrier
- width of the DL will decrease and at certain extend of time it will
break and the built in voltage are decrease to zero thus all the
charge in both material can move freely and create a closed loop
path (CCL) for the current to pass through.

P-N junction current-voltage
characteristics
What can you relate on the previous slides?

FWD biased & RV biased