Chapter-7

Bipolar Junction Transistors

Lecture: 32-35
Dr. Navneet Gupta

Inventors
John Bardeen

Walter Brattain

William Shockley
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Fundamentals of BJT

Control the junction reverse current simply by varying the rate of minority
carrier injection.
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BJT structure
heavily doped
provides the carriers

lightly doped

NPN BJT

lightly doped

Forward Biased P-N-P transistor

Wb Lp

Doping: E B C
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Hole and Electron Flow in a p-n-p transistor

Recombination in the base

Electron injection into emitter at
FB emitter junction

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Current Gain and Amplification

Assumptions:
Emitter efficiency = 1
Collector saturation
current = 0

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Minority carrier distributions and

terminal currents
To solve for the excess hole distribution in the
base.
To evaluate the IE and IC from the hole gradient on
each side of the base.
Assumptions:

Negligible drift in the base

Emitter efficiency =1
Collector saturation current is negligible.
Uniform cross-sectional area A
All currents and voltages are steady state.

Dr. Navneet Gupta

Equation of excess holes in Base region

Lecture - 33

p ( xn ) C1e

xn

Lp

C2 e

xn

Lp

Boundary Conditions
p ( xn 0) C1 C2 pE
Wb

Wb

p ( xn Wb ) C1e
C2 e
pC
Solve for C1 and C 2 and taking pC 0
Wb

Excess Hole Distribution

p(xn ) pE

Lp

Lp

xn

Wb

Lp

Lp

e
e

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Wb

Wb

Lp

xn
Lp

Lp

Lp

Evaluation of the Terminal Currents

Wb

p(xn ) pE

Lp

xn

Wb

Lp

Lp

e
e

Wb
Lp

xn

Lp

Wb
Lp

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Evaluation of the Terminal Currents

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Example-1
Find the expression for the current I for the
transistor connection shown if = 1
How does the current I divide between the base
lead and the collector lead?

E
p+

V
-

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Approximations of the Terminal Currents

For ~ 1, we can neglect pC (if the collector

is RB and pn is small) in calculating terminal
currents.
p
p

pE

pE
-pn
Wb

Q
p
Q

Wb

xn

0
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Wb
13

Current Transfer Ratio

For actual transistor gamma 1

Wb nn n
1 p
n
Ln p p p
IC
Wb
B
sec h
I Ep
Lp
p

B
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Lecture - 34

Generalized Biasing

This holds for a real transistor.

E and C may differ
Biasing condition may change.

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The Coupled-Diode Model

Base hole distribution (PNP) under different bias conditions:
(a) approximate hole distribution in the base with emitter and collector
junctions both forward biased;
(b)hole distribution due to injection and collection in the normal
bias; IEN and ICN are the normal mode emitter current and collector
current.
(c) hole distribution due to the inverted mode; IEI and ICI are the
inverted mode emitter current and collector current.

EEEC381

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For the symmetrical transistor, currents components

are:

Linear superposition

where
A apn
B bpn
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More general:

emitter current in normal mode:

where IES is the emitter saturation current in normal
mode with collector junction short ,i.e. VCB=0
similarly the collector current in inverted mode is

where ICS is the collector saturation current in inverted

mode with emitter junction short ,i.e. VEB=0
The corresponding currents
by defining a new .

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Ebers-Moll model

The total current

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Equivalent Circuits of Ebers-Moll model:

pE pn (eqVEB / kT 1)

pC pn (eqVCB / kT 1)
EEEC381

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I C N I E (1 N I ) I CS (e qVCB / kT 1)
I E I I C (1 N I ) I ES (e qVEB / kT 1)
define I CO (1 N I ) I CS collector saturation current with emitter open
I EO (1 N I ) I ES emitter saturation current with collector open
then

I E I I C (1 N I ) I ES (e qVEB / kT 1)
I I C I EO (e qVEB / kT 1)
I C N I E (1 N I ) I CS (e qVCB / kT 1)

Another form
of Ebers-Moll
Equation

N I E I CO (e qVCB / kT 1)
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I E I I C I EO (eqVEB / kT 1)
I C N I E I CO (eqVCB / kT 1)

For normal operation

EEEC381

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Example

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Charge Control Model

QN

I CN

QN

tN

I EI

QI

tI

and
and

QI

I EN

QN

tN

I CI

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QI

tI

QN

pN

QI

pI
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Charge Control Model

Since I E I EN I EI QN (

tN

I C I CN I CI

QN

tN

QI (

pN

tI

)
1

pI

QI

tI
)

the base current supports recombination:

QN
QI
in normal mode : I BN
in inverted mode : I BI

pN

I B I BN I BI

QN

pN

pI

QI

pI

the base to collector current amplification in normal mode is

I CN pN
N

I BN tN

EEEC381

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Charge Control Model

For transient condition

iE QN (

tN

iC
iB

QN

tN

QN

pN

pN

QI

tI

dQN

dt

dQI
QI (
)
tI pI
dt
1

QI

pI

dQN dQI

dt
dt

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Switching

saturation

Cut off

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Cut-Off
VEB VCB

Carrier distribution
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Ebers-Moll model
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Lecture - 35

Secondary effects

Non-uniform base doping

built in field due to nonuniform doping is

kT 1 dN ( x)
E ( x) q N ( x) dx

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If N ( x) N (0)e- ax / Wb

kT a
then E ( x)
q Wb
this built-in field will aid the transport of holes across the base
therefore the transit time is reduced
I c QB / t increase increase

Dr. Navneet Gupta

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Base narrowing effects

Also known as Early
Effects or base width
modulation
Observed for example in
p+np+ transistor
VCB increase will cause
base width to decrease
Increase in conc. gradient.
Reduction in transit time
therefore Ic will increase

2 sVBC 1/ 2
l (
)
qN d

Lb : metallurgical width
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Breakdown associated:
Punch through

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I C ( N I E I CO ) M
Avalanche multiplication

1
M
1 (VBC / BVCBO ) n

BVCBO > BVCEO

BVCBO common base breakdown voltage with emitter open

BVCEO common emitter breakdown voltage with base open
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High level injection effects

Thermal run away

Thermal run away:

Larger IC larger heat dissipation
temperature increase carrier lifetime
increase IC increase thermal run away
ICVBC = measure of power dissipation at the collector junction

Dr. Navneet Gupta

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