Unit V

Basic Electronics(ii)
• Introduction to Semiconductors
• Diodes, V-I characteristics,
• Bipolar junction transistors (BJT) and their
working,
• introduction to CC, CB & CE transistor
configurations, different configurations and
modes of operation of BJT
• Introduction to Semiconductor Materials
• Intrinsic and extrinsic semiconductors.
• Principle of operation of PN Junction diode.
• V-I characteristics of PN Junction diode. Specifications of diode.
• Principle of working of Zener diode & LED.
• Principle of working of Photo diode & Solar cell.
• Bipolar Junction Transistors: PNP and NPN structures-Principle
of operation.
• Input and output characteristics of common emitter
configuration.
• Specifications of transistors.
 Introduction to
Semiconductor Materials
 Electronic Materials
• The goal of electronic materials is to generate
and control the flow of an electrical current.
• Electronic materials include:
– Conductors: have low resistance which allows
electrical current flow
– Insulators: have high resistance which suppresses
electrical current flow
– Semiconductors: can allow or suppress electrical
current flow
 Insulators
• Insulators have a high resistance so current
does not flow in them.
• Good insulators include:
– Glass, ceramic, plastics, & wood
• Most insulators are compounds of several
elements.
• The atoms are tightly bound to one another so
electrons are difficult to strip away for current
flow.
 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.
 Semiconductor Valence Orbit

• The main
characteristic of a
semiconductor
element is that it has
four electrons in its
outer or valence
orbit.
 Crystal Lattice Structure

• The unique capability of

semiconductor atoms is
their ability to link
together to form a
physical structure called
a crystal lattice.
• The atoms link together
with one another sharing
their outer electrons.
• These links are called 2D Crystal Lattice Structure
covalent bonds.
3D Crystal Lattice Structure
 Semiconductors can be Insulators
• If the material is pure semiconductor material like silicon, the
crystal lattice structure forms an excellent insulator since all
the atoms are bound to one another and are not free for
current flow.
• Good insulating semiconductor material is referred to as
intrinsic.
• Since the outer valence electrons of each atom are tightly
bound together with one another, the electrons are difficult
to dislodge for current flow.
• Silicon in this form is a great insulator.
• Semiconductor material is often used as an insulator.
 Doping
• To make the semiconductor conduct
electricity, other atoms called impurities must
be added.
• “Impurities” are different elements.
• This process is called doping.
 Semiconductors can be Conductors

• An impurity, or element like

arsenic, has 5 valence
electrons.
• Adding arsenic (doping) will
allow four of the arsenic
valence electrons to bond
with the neighboring silicon
atoms.
• The one electron left over for
each arsenic atom becomes
available to conduct current
flow.
 Resistance Effects of Doping
• If you use lots of arsenic atoms for doping,
there will be lots of extra electrons so the
resistance of the material will be low and
current will flow freely.
• If you use only a few boron atoms, there will
be fewer free electrons so the resistance will
be high and less current will flow.
• By controlling the doping amount, virtually
any resistance can be achieved.
 Another Way to Dope
• You can also dope a semiconductor
material with an atom such as
boron that has only 3 valence
electrons.
• The 3 electrons in the outer orbit do
form covalent bonds with its
neighboring semiconductor atoms
as before. But one electron is
missing from the bond.
• This place where a fourth electron
should be is referred to as a hole.
• The hole assumes a positive charge
so it can attract electrons from
some other source.
• Holes become a type of current
carrier like the electron to support
current flow.
 Types of Semiconductor Materials
• The silicon doped with extra electrons is called
an “N type” semiconductor.
– “N” is for negative, which is the charge of an
electron.
• Silicon doped with material missing electrons
that produce locations called holes is called “P
type” semiconductor.
– “P” is for positive, which is the charge of a hole.
 Current Flow in N-type Semiconductors

• The DC voltage source has a

positive terminal that attracts the
free electrons in the
semiconductor and pulls them
away from their atoms leaving the
atoms charged positively.
• Electrons from the negative
terminal of the supply enter the
semiconductor material and are
attracted by the positive charge of
the atoms missing one of their
electrons.
• Current (electrons) flows from the
positive terminal to the negative
terminal.
 Current Flow in P-type Semiconductors

• Electrons from the negative

supply terminal are attracted to
the positive holes and fill them.
• The positive terminal of the
supply pulls the electrons from
the holes leaving the holes to
attract more electrons.
• Current (electrons) flows from
the negative terminal to the
positive terminal.
• Inside the semiconductor
current flow is actually by the
movement of the holes from
positive to negative.
 In Summary
• In its pure state, semiconductor material is an excellent
insulator.
• The commonly used semiconductor material is silicon.
• Semiconductor materials can be doped with other atoms to add
or subtract electrons.
• An N-type semiconductor material has extra electrons.
• A P-type semiconductor material has a shortage of electrons
with vacancies called holes.
• The heavier the doping, the greater the conductivity or the
lower the resistance.
• By controlling the doping of silicon the semiconductor material
can be made as conductive as desired.
Conductor,Insulator,Semiconductor
• Conductor:
– If the number of valance electrons is less than 4, the material is
generally called conductor. Instead of accepting electrons, it is
easier to donate electrons to fill the outer sub shell as 8.
– Insulator:
– If the number of valance electrons is more than 4, the material
is generally called insulator. Instead of donating electrons, it is
easier to accept lesser electrons to fill the outer sub shell.
– Semiconductor:
– If the number of valance electrons is equal to 4, the material is
generally called semi conductor. Here the probability of
donating and accepting electrons is equal.
 Energy Band of Insulators

• The electrical behavior of solid can be explained with the help of energy bands.
• Insulators

• Here the valance band is full while the conduction band is empty. The energy gap between valance
band and conduction band is very large (15 eV).Therefore a very high electric field is required to lift
the valance electrons to the conduction band
 Energy Band of Conductors
• Conductors

• In the energy band diagram, there is no forbidden energy gap between

the valance band and the conduction band .The two bands actually
overlap as shown in fig.
 Energy Band of Semi Conductors

• In the case of semi conductors, the valance band is almost

filled and conduction band is empty. But the forbidden energy
gap is very small (1 eV) as shown in fig.There fore
comparatively a smaller electric field is required to lift the
valance electrons to the conduction band. Thus the
conductivity of semiconductor lies between a conductor and
insulator.
 Intrinsic Semi Conductor:

• A semi conductor in its purest form is known

as intrinsic semi conductor.
• Eg: Ge or Si crystal
 Extrinsic Semi Conductor:

• The conductivity of the intrinsic semiconductor can be

increased by adding small amount of impurities. The process
of adding impurities to the intrinsic (pure) semiconductor is
called doping. The doped semiconductor is then called
extrinsic (impure) semi conductor.
• Depending on the dopant (impurity) used, extrinsic semi
conductor can be divided in to two classes.
– N-type Semi conductor.
– P-type Semi conductor.
 N-type Semi conductor

• N-type semi conductor is an extrinsic semi

conductor doped with a pentavalent impurity
like Antimony, Phosphorus and Arsenic etc.
 N-type semi conductor
• The N-type semi conductor can be represented as shown in fig.

• It consists of
• Free electrons (Majority carriers).
• Holes (Minority Carriers).
• Immobile positive ions.
 P-type Semi conductor
• P-type semi conductor is an extrinsic semi
conductor doped with a trivalent impurity like
Gallium, indium and Boron etc.
 P-type semi conductor
• The P-type semi conductor can be represented as
shown in fig.
• It consists of
– Holes (Majority carriers).
– Free electrons (Minority Carriers).
– Immobile negative ions.
Diodes and Transistors
PN Junction
 PN Junction with Forward Bias
• When an external voltage is applied to the PN
junction in such a way that positive terminal of the
battery is connected to the P-type and negative
terminal of the battery is connected to the N-type.
This arrangement is called forward biased.
 PN Junction with Reverse Bias
• When an external voltage is applied to the PN
junction in such a way that positive terminal of the
battery is connected to the N-type and negative
terminal of the battery is connected to the P-type.
This arrangement is called reverse biased.
 Break down in PN Junction
• If the reverse bias voltage is increased beyond a
certain limit, a new phenomenon called break
down occurs. In this region high current may be
passed through the junction. This high current may
generate large amount of heat to destroy the
junction. The two processes are responsible for
junction break down in reverse biased condition
namely,
• Avalanche break down
• Zener break down
 Avalanche Break Down
• The increased reverse voltage increases the amount of
energy impaled to minority carriers. As the reverse
voltage is increased further the minority carriers acquire
a large amount of energy. When these carriers collide
with atoms, within the crystal structure they impact
sufficient energy to break a covalent bond and generate
additional carriers (electron hole pairs). These additional
carriers pick up energy from the applied voltage and
generate more carriers, and reverse current increased
rapidly. This cumulative process of carrier generation (or
multiplication) is known as Avalanche breakdown.
 Zener Break Down:

• It occurs when diode is heavily doped. Due to

heavy doping, depletion layer is narrow. When
the reverse voltage across the diode is increased,
electric field is developed across depletion layer.
Electric field is strong enough to generate large
number of electron-hole pair by breaking
covalent bonds. Because of large number of these
carriers reverse current increases sharply and
breakdown occurs which is known as Zener
Breakdown.
Zener Breakdown Vs Avalanche Breakdown
• Diode junctions that breakdown below 5 V are caused by Zener
effect whereas Junctions that experience breakdown above 5 V
are caused by Avalanche effect.
• The Zener breakdown occurs in heavily doped junctions, which
produce Narrow depletion layers, whereas Avalanche
breakdown occurs in lightly doped junctions, which produce
wide depletion layers.
• With the increase in junction temperature, Zener breakdown
voltage is reduced while the Avalanche breakdown voltage is
increases.
• The zener diodes have a negative temperature coefficient while
Avalanche diodes have a positive temperature coefficient.
 Semi conductor Diodes:
• Diode is a two terminal device consisting of a PN
junction formed either in Ge or Si crystal. Here the
terminal on the P-side is called the anode and the
terminal on the N-side is called the cathode. The PN
junction conducts the current only when it is in
forward biased and no current flows through it when
it is in reverse biased(i.e. ,current flows in only one
direction). Thus the diode is called uni directional
device.
VI characteristics of junction Diode
 Diode specifications

• The following are the different diode

parameters.
– Semiconductor material
– Forward voltage drop (Vf)
– Peak Inverse Voltage (PIV)
– Maximum forward current
– Junction capacitance:
 Zener Diode
• Zener diodes are also called breakdown diodes.
• Specially doped PN junction diodes to produce controlled break down
characteristics without damage and are operated in the break down region.

• Break down in zener diode is influenced by two phenomenon, zener effect

and avalanche effect.

• Zener effect is predominant for break down voltages less than about 4V and
avalanche break down is predominant for voltages greater than 6V.Between
4V and 6V, both effects are present.

• Because of high temperature and current capability, Silicon is usually

preferred for the manufacture of zener diodes.
• Applications
Zener Diode
– Voltage regulator
– Fixed reference voltage source
– Over voltage protection circuit.
 Light Emitting Diode (LED)
• Light emitting diode is a PN junction that
emits optical radiation generated by the
recombination of electrons and holes, when
the junction is forward biased. Most of the
commercial LEDs are realized using a highly
doped N and a P Junction.
 LED- Principle of Operation

• Fig:The energy band diagram of a pn+ junction

under unbiased and biased conditions
 LED-Advantages,Disadvantages and
Applications
• Advantages:
– High reliability
– Fast response
– Low cost
– Low power consumption
• Disadvantages:
– Temperature dependence of radiation
– Sensitivity to over voltage damage
• Applications:
– Indicator lamp and displays in equipments such as digital watches,
calculators etc.
– Optical communication system
 Photo-diode
• A photo-diode is a reverse-biased silicon or
germanium pn junction in which reverse current
increases when the junction is exposed to light. The
reverse current in a photo-diode is directly
proportional to the intensity of light falling on its pn
junction. This means that greater the intensity of
light falling on the pn junction of photo-diode, the
greater will be the reverse current.
 Photo diode-Working principle
• When light (photons) falls on the pn junction, the energy is imparted by
the photons to the atoms in the junction. This will create more free
electrons (and more holes). These additional free electrons will increase
the reverse current. As the intensity of light incident on the pn junction
increases, the reverse current also increases. In other words, as the
incident light intensity increases, the resistance of the device (photo-
diode) decreases.

When no light is incident on the pn junction of photo-diode, the

reverse current Ir is extremely small. This is called dark current. As

 Modes of Operation
• Photodiodes can be operated in different modes, which are as follows:
• Photovoltaic mode – It is also known as zero bias mode, in which a voltage is
generated by the illuminated photodiode.
• Photoconductive mode - The diode used in this mode is more commonly reverse
biased.
• Avalanche diode mode - Avalanche photodiodes are operated in a high reverse
bias condition, which allow multiplication of an avalanche breakdown to each
photo-generated electron-hole pair. This results in internal gain within the
photodiode, which gradually increases the responsivity of the device.
 Photodiode Applications

• Photodiodes find application in the following:

– Cameras
– Medical devices
– Optical communication devices
– Automotive devices
 Solar Cell
• A solar cell is a solid-state electrical device (p-n
junction) that converts the energy of light directly
into electricity (DC) using the photovoltaic effect.
Illumination Characteristics
 Numbering and coding schemes for diodes
• EIA/JEDEC
– A standardized 1N-series numbering system was introduced in the US
by EIA/JEDEC (Joint Electron Device Engineering Council) about 1960.
Among the most popular in this series were: 1N4001-1N4007 (Silicon
1A power rectifier)
• Pro Electron
– The European Pro Electron coding system for active components was
introduced in 1966 and comprises two letters followed by the part
code. The first letter represents the semiconductor material used for
the component (A = Germanium and B = Silicon) and the second letter
represents the general function of the part (for diodes: A = low-
power/signal,Y = Rectifier and Z = Voltage reference)
– e.g.: BY127
 Transistor
• A transistor is a semiconductor device used to amplify or
switch electronic signals and electrical power. Transistors are
one of the basic building blocks of modern electronics.
• Three terminal active device which transforms current flow
from low resistance path to high resistance path. This transfer
of current through resistance path, given the name to the
device ‘transfer resistor’ as transistor.
• Transistors consists of junctions within it, are called junction
transistors.
• Current carries inside is by two opposite polarities of charge
carriers (electrons and holes), hence the name bipolar junction
transistor.
 Transistor-Structure
• If a P-type material is sandwiched between two N-type materials ,the
resulting structure is called NPN transistor. Similarly when N-type material
is sandwiched between the two P-type materials , the resulting structure
is called PNP transistor.
• In both cases, the first layer where the emission or injection of the
carriers starts is called emitter. The second layer through which carriers
passes is called the base and the third layer which collects the injected
carriers is called collector.
 Working of Transistor
• Usually, silicon is used for making the transistor because of
their high voltage rating, greater current and less temperature
sensitivity. The emitter-base section kept in forward biased
constitutes the base current which flows through the base
region. The magnitude of the base current is very small. The
base current causes the electrons to move into the collector
region or create a hole in the base region.
• The base of the transistor is very thin and lightly doped
because of which it has less number of electrons as compared
to the emitter. The few electrons of the emitter are combined
with the hole of the base region and the remaining electrons
are moved towards the collector region and constitute the
collector current. Thus we can say that the large collector
current is obtained by varying the base region.
 Transistor-Region of operation
Transistor Operating Conditions

When the emitter junction is in forward biased and the collector

junction is in reverse bias, then it is said to be in the active region. The

Emitter
transistor junction
has two junctionsCollector
which canjunction
be biasedRegion of operation
in different ways. The

Reverse
different biased
working Reverse
conduction of biased is shownCut-off
the transistor regionbelow.
in the table

Forward biased Reverse biased Active region

Forward biased Forward biased Saturation region

Reverse biased Forward biased Inverse action

• FR – In this case, the emitter-base junction is connected in forward
biased and the collector-base junction is connected in reverse
biased. The transistor is in the active region and the collector
current is depend on the emitter current. The transistor, which
operates in this region is used for amplification.
• FF – In this condition, both the junction is in forward biased. The
transistor is in saturation and the collector current becomes
independent of the base current. The transistors act like a closed
switch.
• RR – Both the current are in reverse biased. The emitter does not
supply the majority charge carrier to the base and carriers current
are not collected by the collector. Thus the transistors act like a
closed switch.
• RF – The emitter-base junction is in reverse bias and the collector-
base junction is kept in forward biased. As the collector is lightly
doped as compared to the emitter junction it does not supply the
majority charge carrier to the base. Hence poor transistor action is
achieved.
 NPN Transistor
• The transistor in which one p-type material is placed
between two n-type materials is known as NPN
transistor.
• The NPN transistor amplifies the weak signal enter
into the base and produces strong amplify signals at
the collector end.
• In NPN transistor, the direction of movement of an
electron is from the emitter to collector region due
to which the current constitutes in tor is mostly used
in the circuit because transistor. Such type of
transisse their majority charge carriers are electrons
which have high mobility as compared to holes.
 Construction of NPN Transistor
• The NPN transistor has two diodes connected
back to back. The diode on the left side is called
an emitter-base diode, and the diodes on the left
side are called collector-base diode. These names
are given as per the name of the terminals.

• The NPN transistor has three terminals, namely

emitter, collector and base. The middle section of
the NPN transistor is lightly doped, and it is the
most important factor of the working of the
transistor. The emitter is moderately doped, and
the collector is heavily doped.
 Circuit Diagram of NPN Transistor
• The circuit diagram of the NPN transistor is
shown in the figure below. The collector and
the base circuit is connected in reverse biased
while the emitter and base circuit is connected
in forward biased. The collector is always
connected to the positive supply, and the base
is in negative supply for controlling the
ON/OFF states of the transistor.
Transistor-Operation (NPN)
 Transistor Configurations:
• Common Base (CB).
• Common Emitter (CE).
• Common Collector (CC).
 Common Emitter Configuration
• Input is given between base and emitter, while
output is taken across the collector and
emitter. Here emitter is common to both input
and output.
 CE Configuration
• Circuit Arrangement
CE Input Characteristics
CE Output Characteristics
Comparison between CB,CE & CC
Properties Common Common Common
Base Emitter Collector
Input Low Medium High
Impedance
Output Very High High Low
Impedance
Voltage High Medium Low
Gain
Current Low Medium High
Gain
Power Gain Low Very High Medium
 Transistor Specifications
• Type number
– The type number of the device is a unique identifier given to each type
of transistor. There are three international schemes that are widely
used: European Pro-Electron scheme; US JEDEC (numbers start with
2N for transistors); and the Japanese system (numbers start with 2S).
• Polarity
– There are two types of transistor: NPN and PNP. It is important to
choose the correct type otherwise all the circuit polarities will be
wrong.
• Material
– The two main types of material used for transistors are germanium
and silicon. Other materials are used, but in very specialised
transistors.
 Transistor Numbering
• Joint Electron Device Engineering Council (JEDEC)
– These part numbers take the form: digit, letter, sequential
number, [suffix]
– The letter is always 'N', and the first digit is 1 for diodes, 2 for
transistors, 3 for four-leaded devices, and so forth. The
sequential numbers run from 100 to 9999 and indicate the
approximate time the device was first made. If present, a
suffix could indicate various things. For example, a 2N2222A
is an enhanced version of a 2N2222. It has higher gain,
frequency, and voltage ratings. Always check the data sheet.
– Examples: 1N914 (diode), 2N2222, 2N2222A, 2N904
(transistors).
 Transistor Numbering
• Pro-Electron
– These part numbers take the form: two letters, [letter], sequential number, [suffix]
– The first letter indicates the material:
– A = Ge
– B = Si
– C = GaAs
– The second letter indicates the device type and intended application:
– A: diode, RF
– C: transistor, AF, small signal
– D: transistor, AF, power
– F: transistor, HF, small signal
– L: Transistor, HF, power
– U: Transistor, power, switching
– Y: Rectifier
– Z: Zener, or voltage regulator diode
– The third letter indicates if the device is intended for industrial or commercial applications. It's usually a
W, X, Y, or Z. The sequential numbers run from 100-9999.

• Examples: BC108A, BAW68, BF239, BFY51.