Lecture 2

Habiba Kiran

Dr. Abdul Majid Sandhu, Department of Physics,

University of Gujrat.
 Atomic Structure

 Elements are made of atoms

 110 Elements; each has an atomic
structure

 Bohr Model
 Atoms have planetary structure
 Atoms are made of nucleus (Protons (+)
& Neutrons) and electrons (-)

110 th element is called Darmstadtium (Ds)

 Atomic Structure
 Electrons go around the nucleus in their orbits at
discrete distances
 Each orbit has some energy level
 The closer the orbit to the nucleus the less energy it
has
 Electrons on the same shell have similar energy level
 Valence shell is the outmost shell. Its electrons are
ready to be freed
 Number of electrons (Ne) on each shell (n)

Ne = 2n2
 First shell has 2 electrons
 Second shell has 8 electrons (not shown here)
 Valence Shell

 Atoms are made of valence shell

and core
 Core includes nucleus and other
inner shells
 For a Carbon atom the atomic
number is 6
 Core charge = 6 P + 2 e = (+6)+(-
2)=(+4)
 Remember the first shell has 2
electrons
 Elements

 Basic categories Free electrons

 Conductors
 Examples: Copper, silver
 One valence electron , the e can
easily be freed Always free
electrons

 Insulators
 Valence electrons are tightly
bounded to the atom
 Semiconductors
 Silicon, germanium (single
element) Conduction band is where the
 Gallium arsenide, indium electron leaves the valence shell
phosphide (compounds) and becomes free
 They can act as conductors or Valence band is where the
insulators
outmost shell is
 What is a Semiconductor?

 Low resistivity => “conductor”

 High resistivity => “insulator”
 Intermediate resistivity => “semiconductor”
 conductivity lies between that of conductors and
insulators
 generally crystalline in structure for IC devices
Semiconductor Materials

Phosphor
us
Galliu (P)
m
(Ga)
 Semiconductor types

 A material whose properties are such that it is not quite a conductor, not quite an
insulator
 Some common semiconductors
 elemental
 Si - Silicon (most common)

 Ge - Germanium

 compound
 GaAs - Gallium arsenide

 GaP - Gallium phosphide

 AlAs - Aluminum arsenide

 AlP - Aluminum phosphide

 InP - Indium Phosphide

 Semiconductor Crystalline Structure

 Semiconductors have a regular crystalline

structure
 for monocrystal, extends through entire

structure
 for polycrystal, structure is interrupted at

irregular boundaries
 Monocrystal has uniform 3-dimensional
structure
 Atoms occupy fixed positions relative to one
another, but
are in constant vibration about equilibrium
 Semiconductors
 Remember the further away from the
nucleus the less energy is required to
free the electrons
 Germanium is less stable
 Less energy is required to make the
electron to jump to the conduction band

 When atoms combine to form a solid,

they arrange themselves in a
symmetrical patterns
 Semiconductor atoms (silicon) form
crystals
 Intrinsic crystals have no impurities
 Conduction Electrons and Holes
 Electrons exist only within prescribed
energy bands
 These bands are separated by energy
gaps
 When an electron jumps to the
conduction band it causes a hole
 When electron falls back to its initial
valence recombination occurs
 Consequently there are two different
types of currents
 Hole current (electrons are the minority
carriers)
 Electron current (holes are the minority
carriers)

Remember: We are interested in electrical current!

 Improving Conduction by
Doping

 To make semiconductors better conductors, add

impurities (dopants) to contribute extra electrons
or extra holes
 elements with 5 outer electrons contribute an extra electron to
the lattice (donor dopant)
 elements with 3 outer electrons accept an electron from the
silicon (acceptor dopant)
 Doping
 By adding impurities to the intrinsic
semiconductor we can change the conductivity
of the material – this is called doping
 N-type doping
 P-type doping
 N-type: pentavalent (atom with 5 valence
electrons) impurity atoms are added
 [Sb(Antimony) + Si]
 Negative charges (electrons) are generated
  N-type has lots of free electrons
 P-type: trivalent (atom with 3 valence electrons)
impurity atoms are added
 [B(Boron) + Si]
 Positive charges (holes) are generated
 P-type has lots of holes
 Electron and Hole
Concentrations
 Under thermal equilibrium conditions, the product
of the conduction-electron density and the hole
density is ALWAYS equal to the square of ni:
np  ni
2

N-type material P-type material

n  ND p  NA
2 2
n n
p i n i
ND NA
 Diodes
 N region has lots of free electrons
 P region has lots of holes
 At equilibrium: total number positive and negative
charges is the same (@ room temp)
 At the pn junction the electrons and holes with different
charges form an electric field
 In order to move electrons through the electric field
(generate current) we need some force (voltage)
 This potential difference is called barrier voltage
 When enough voltage is applied such that electrons are
moved then we are biasing the diode
 Two layers of positive and negative charges for depletion
region – the region near the pn-junction is depleted of
charge carriers)
 Biasing Types of a Diode
 Forward bias
Connected to the
 Bias voltage VBias > barrier voltage VBar negative side of
the battery
 Reduction in + and – ions  smaller
depletion region
 VBar Depends on material, doping, temp,
etc. (e.g., for silicon it is 0.7 V)
 Reverse bias
Connected to the
 Essentially a condition that prevents positive side of the
electrons to pass through the diode battery

 Very small reverse break down current

 Larger depletion region is generated

A K
Anode Cathode
p region n region
Biasing Types of a Diode (Forward)

Small dynamic resistance

Conventional
Current Flow
I (Forward)

Moving
electrons

VBias

Conventional
Current Flow
A K
Anode Cathode
p region n region
p n
Biasing Types of a Diode (Reverse)

Large resistance
Instant pull of
electrons

Very Small
Moving
Electrons:
Reverse Current)
VBias
Holes are left behind;
large depletion region

Conventional
Current Flow
A K
Anode Cathode
p region n region
p n
 I-V Characteristic of a Diode
 Forward bias: current passes through Electrons moving
 The knee is where VBias=VBar from n to p region
 At point B VBias < VBar  Very little current
 Note that at the knee the current increases rapidly but V(forward) stays
almost the same

 Reveres bias: No current passes through

 When VBias < VBar  Very little current (mu or nano Amp)
 At the knee, the reverse current increases rapidly but the reverse
voltage remains almost the same
 Large reverse current can result in overheating and possibly damaging
the diode (V=50V or higher typically)

 Overheating results from high-speed electrons in the p-region

knocking out electrons of atoms in n-region from their orbit to the
conduction band
 Hence, we use limiting resistors