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(iv) Formulas
(v) Example problems worked out
(vi) The steps used in the problem listed in order
(vii) Reminders of things to look out for in doing a problem
(viii) Any rules used to solve problems
Electronic Properties of Silicon
Quantum Theory
WAVE 2
k= = wavelength
NUMBER
ANGULAR =2 v v = frequency
FREQUENCY
=h 2 & h is planks
SCHRODINGER constant
EQUATION V(x) is the potential energy
of the particle
m is its mass,
CONSERVED
PARTICLE
AKA: NORMALIZATION CONDITION, AS IN PROBABILITY THEORY.
T H E C O M P LET E W AV E F U N C T I O N
For the infinite square well problem.
ENERGYTIME
t is the time interval required for an appreciable change to
UNCERTAINTY
occur in the properties of the system under study
RELATION
ao Corresponds to the
WAVEFUNCTION
BHOR most prob radius for
HYDROGEN RADIUS the electron
energy eigenfunction which represents an electron
there also exist two possible spin states. (spin up or
SPIN s= /2 spin down).
in addition to the wavefunction we must also specify
the spin.
Note: Qualitatively, one can think of the electron wave possessing a circular polarization and thus a
localized current loop leading to an intrinsic magnetic field. Clockwise and counter clockwise
rotation can be related to the two possible values of spin.
PAULI EXCLUSION No more than 1 electron can be in any given state ((x,t) and spin state) at the
PRINCIPLE same time.
Electrons in Crystals
The Two Approaches to Modeling Electrons in Crystals
Metals vs Insulators
Each band has 2N (spin, remember?) available electron states where N is the number of unit cells
making up the crystal. How the bands are filled with electrons determines whether a material is
a metal or an insulator.
Uppermost populated energy band is only partially filled
(say, half-filled) then there are plenty of higher energy states
METALS available for electrons to gain kinetic energy so that they
can contribute to current flow and thus the crystal is able to
conduct electricity.
When electrons are excited from the valence band conduction band of a semiconductor
The electrons promoted into the conduction band can now participate in electronic
transport.
In addition, the electrons in the valence band now have some empty states available for them
to also
participate in current flow. The vacant states that are left in the otherwise full valence band
can be treated as if they were particles called holes.
In Conduction
ELECTRON If k0 = k0 then the
Band
ENERGIES band gap is direct
In Valence Band
Intrinsic / Extrinsic (N or P Type)
intrinsic material extrinsic material
the number of electrons in the conduction band one type of carrier has a greater concentration
is equal to the number of holes in the valence (majority carriers) than the other (minority
band. carriers).
Fermi level lies very close to the middle of
the band gap
Donor Impurities: effective mass and the dielectric
constant of the semiconductor (or relative
BINDING ENERGY permittivity, r) of the atom
Acceptor Impurities: Replace the electron effective
mass with the hole effective mass.
ENERGY LEVEL
E0 the energy of an electron that has been just freed from a material.
VACUUM
N TYPE P TYPE
Majority Carrier: Electrons Majority Carrier: Holes
Minority Carrier: Holes Minority Carrier: Electrons
doping of the crystal with impurity atoms Doping of the crystal with impurity atoms that
that donate electrons to the accept electrons from the valence band
conduction band B, Al, Ga, and In. etc
P, As, Sb etc
WHICH TO USE?
Fermi Level: Fermi Level:
Note: The intrinsic carrier concentration increases with increasing temperature and
decreases with
increasing band gap
Note that the product of electron and hole concentrations in a semiconductor is constant
for a given temperature (mass-action law)
Thermal equilibrium If E EF <<
DENSITY OF concentration of kBT
STATES electrons in the (Only by like 2-
conduction band 3x)
EFFECTIVE D OF S IN
CARRIER THE COND AND VAL
CONCENTRATIONS BANDS
In terms of
intrinsic
concentration
and Fermi level
intrinsic Fermi level lies very close to the center
of the band gap, with only a slight offset due to
INTRINSIC the difference in electron and hole effective
FERMI LEVEL mass.
POSITION In thermal equilibrium, there is no net current
flow and thus the Fermi level must be constant
throughout the material or device.
CONDUCTIVITY
DRIFT CURRENT =
DENSITY
RESISTIVITY p=1/
Scattering
Lattice scattering increases with temperature as the vibrations of the lattice become greater. This type of
cattering causes the mobility to scale as a power law with temperature, T--n, with n typically ~1.53.
Impurity or defect scattering, on the other hand, decreases as temperature increases. This is due to the
increased thermal velocity of carriers, which makes them less susceptible to interaction with impurities/defects
DIFFUSION
DIFFUSION
CURRENT
CONSTANTS (kb)
DENSITY
-----------T O TAL E L E C T R O N AN D H OL E C UR RE NT D E N SIT IE S --------
(INCLUDING BOTH DRIFT AND DIFFUSION)
Examples
Particle Energies (Quantum Well)
Energy of a Free Particle
2 2
k
E= ==hv
2m
h
p=k = de Broglie relation
ENERGY
Cant use cos, it wouldnt equal 0 at the origin.
EIGENFUNCTION
Therefore, by confining the particle to a box its energy levels become quantized:
Energy levels are inversely proportionally to the width of the
ENERGY well squared; i.e., more confinement (smaller well) leads to
OF higher energy levels.
PARTICLE In addition, the energy levels become increasingly spaced out
2
as n increases due to the factor of n
IN INFINITE It also tells us the lowest energy a particle can have when
WELL confined to a region of space and that this must be a finite
value, known as the ground state energy
EnergyTime Uncertainty
Fixed Stationary State
The system does not change, as expected for a state fixed in time. E = 0 and thus the energytime
uncertainty relation yields t = 1. (or Vice Versa: t = 1 E = 0)
Excited state
Particle that has been excited to some higher energy level
En and then decays.
Suppose particle in (n = 2) energy level of a quantum well
and spontaneously decays to the lowest (ground) state by the
emission of a photon. If the typical lifetime for this decay to
occur is given by
After the particle reaches its ground state, no further decay can occur and we are back to a fixed
stationary state which does not change in time, as in the previous case. Can know sharpness of the
output spectrum of LEDs can be. Hint: hv
Particle has a finite Pr of transmission through the barrier that depends sensitively on the height and
width of the barrier. In particular, if the barrier becomes thin, the transmission can be quite
significant. This inherently quantum mechanical phenomenon is known as tunneling.
Carrier Concentration Calculation
Basic
Basic 2
Photoconductor (Gen-regen)
Junctions and Diodes
PN Junction
Ideal Behaviour
Non-Ideal Behaviour (Deviations from Ideal)
Small Signal Model & Circuits
Transient Behaviour
Metal-Semiconductor
Schottky Barrier Diode (Blocking Contact)
Ohmic Metal-Silicon Contacts (Non-Blocking Contact)
Non-Ideal
Small Signal Model
Design Considerations
With respect to device and integrated circuit performance
Problem Examples
Bipolar Junction Transitor (BJT)
Structure (Transistor Effect, Gain, Switching)
Field-Effect Devices
Ideal Behaviour
IC Performance
Constants
Charts
Dopant Density vs Resistivity
Mobility vs Carrier