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Semiconductors have revolution the electronics industry. They are used to manufacture a wide
range of electronics devices from discrete diodes and transistors to integrated circuits.
The ability of materials to conduct electricity can be explained using the Bohr’s model of an
atom.
According to this model an atom consists of a positively charged core on nucleus, surrounded
by a cloud of electrons. The electrons constantly move around the core at discrete precisely
specified, distances from the core. These distances are usually specified in terms of energy
levels. The positive charge of the nucleons is balanced by an equal charge of the electrons.
For multi-atom structures a band model of solid state matter should be used to explain the
engineering concept of current conduction. According to this model the energy of electrons
may only be included within some energy bands.
From the point of view of the material’s ability to conduct electric current only the outermost
energy band is important. This band is called the valence band. To make the material conduct
some valence electrons must break free, i.e. they have to increase their energy at least to the
bottom of the conduction band.
The difference of energy between the top of the valence band and the bottom of the
conduction band is called the energy gap.
The energy gap is used as a basis for the division of materials into conductors,
semiconductors and insulators.
To break free from the binding forces of atoms the electrons must acquire energy. One such
form of energy is heat.
In metals the energy gap is very narrow and at room temperature all valence electrons are free
for conduction.
Silicon (Si) is the most commonly used semiconductor. Other elements or chemical
components often used as semiconductors include germanium (Ge), gallium arsenide
(GaAs) indium arsenide (InAs), gallium phosphide (GaP) and many others.
Intrinsic semiconductors
Semiconductors are used in crystalline form – the atoms are precisely aligned with respect to
each other in a well-ordered pattern, which is called a crystal lattice.
Silicon has a quadravalent atom with four electrons in its outermost shell (valence band) and
they form covalent bands with adjacent atoms (see figure).
At O K all of valence electrons are bound to the atoms none is free for conduction and
intrinsic silicon is an insulator.
At a higher temperature an electron may break free from the silicon atom and the covalent
bound with the adjacent atom becomes broken. Such incomplete bonds represent the absence
of an electron – there is a hole.
In intrinsic silicon there are an equal number of negatively charged free electrons and
positively charged holes.
There is a continuous process of bands breaking (generation of the electron-hole pairs) and
forming back (recombination).
Both processes are in dynamic equilibrium and the concentration of these pairs is dependent
on temperature:
⎛ Eg ⎞
ni 2 = nipi = AT 3 exp⎜⎜ − ⎟⎟ni = pi
⎝ kT ⎠
A- material constant
k=1,38*10-23 J/K – Boltzman’s constant
At room temperature:
Silicon(E g = 1,1eV ) ni = 1 ⋅ 5 ⋅ 1010
1
cm 3
Germanium
When an electric field is applied to a bar of silicon, the free electrons will tend to move
towards the positive terminal and the holes will tend to move in the opposite direction.
The hole component of the current may be considered as a movement of valence electrons,
while the electron component means the movement of conduction (free) electrons.
Extrinsic semiconductors
The number of electrons and holes can be changed significantly by adding certain impurities.
When such impurities have been added (this process is often called doping) (at a
concentration of 10-5-10-3%) the semiconductor is referred to as extrinsic semiconductor.
The most commonly used impurities are trivalent elements (boron (B), aluminium(Al),
gallium (Ga), indium (In)) or pentavalent elements (arsenic (As), antimony (Sb),
phonosphorus (P)).
The dopant atoms replace some of the silicon atoms in the crystal lattice.
Four of the five outermost dopant atom are used to complete the covalent bonds with the
silicon, while the fifth electron can easily break free and move throughout the lattice.
At room temperature practically all dopant atoms are ionized. Thus, more electrons are
available for conduction.
p-type semiconductors
Similarly, the dopant atoms replace some of the silicon atoms in the lattice.
Because there are only three electrons available to form covalent bonds with the neighbouring
silicon atoms, one bond is incomplete and thus a hole is present.
The silicon is said to be p-type because additional positively charged holes are generated.
atoms
1 ⋅ 1019
cm 3
It is assumed that at room temperature all dopant atoms (donors or acceptors) are jonized.
In addition, the relationship
Is also valid for doped semiconductors.
n-type
Nd – concentration of donors
nn – concentration of majority carriers (electrons)
p-type
Na – concentration of acceptors
Pp – concentration of majority carriers (holes)
The concentration of the majority carriers is 106 times greater than that of the minority ones
and 103 times higher than the concentration of carriers generated thermally.
The concentration of the thermally generated carriers rapidly increases with temperature”
About 14%/K for Si and 9%/K for Ge
Thus, at a sufficiently high temperature extrinsic semiconductors become intrinsic
semiconductors.
An electric field applied to a semiconductor will induce a drift on the charge carriers (like in
metals).
The drift velocities are proportional to the field strength E:
µn µp [m2/V..s]
Si 0.15 0.048
Ge 0.39 0.19
GaAs 0.90 0.041
InAs 7.81 0.011
In semiconductors local carrier concentration gradients may occur. These gradients cause a
current flow in addition to the normal flow by electric fields.
The current density for electrons or holes in a concentration gradient along the x axis is
Thus, in general, the electric current flowing in semiconductors may have four components:
drift diffusion drift diffusion
electron current density hole current density