Semiconductor Diodes

1. One eV is equal to ________ J.

A. 6.02 × 1023

B. 1.6 × 10–19

C. 6.25 × 1018

D. 1.66 × 10–24

2. The diode ________.

A. is the simplest of semiconductor devices

B. has characteristics that closely match those of a simple switch

C. is a two-terminal device

D. All of the above

3. It is not uncommon for a germanium diode with an Is in the order of 1–2 A at 25°C to have leakage
current of 0.1 mA at a temperature of 100°C.

A. True

B. False

4. What does a high resistance reading in both forward- and reverse-bias directions indicate?

A. A good diode

B. An open diode

C. A shorted diode

D. A defective ohmmeter

5. Which capacitance dominates in the reverse-bias region?

A. depletion

B. conversion

C. 40 ohms Diffusion

D. 140 ohms None of the above

6. What is the state of an ideal diode in the region of nonconduction?

A. An open circuit

B. A short circuit

C. Unpredictable

D. Undefined

7. How many orbiting electrons does the germanium atom have?

A. 4

B. 14

C. 32

D. 41

8. How many terminals does a diode have?

A. 1

B. 2

C. 3

D. 4

9. What unit is used to represent the level of a diode forward current IF?

A. pA

B. nA

C. A

D. mA

10. The diffused impurities with ________ valence electrons are called donor atoms.

A. 4

B. 3

C. 5

D. 0

11. In which of the following color(s) is (are) LEDs presently available?

A. Yellow

B. White

C. Orange

D. All of the above

12. Determining rd to a high degree of accuracy from a characteristic curve is very accurate.

A. True

B. False

13. What is the range of the operating voltage level for LEDs?

A. 5–12 mV

B. 1.7–3.3 V

C. 5–12 V

D. 20–25 V

14. At what kind of operating frequency diffusion or transition is a capacitor represented in parallel with
the ideal diode?

A. Low frequency

B. Moderate frequency

C. Mid frequency

D. Very high frequency

15. Which of the following devices can check the condition of a semiconductor diode?

A. Digital display meter (DDM)

B. Multimeter

C. Curve tracer

D. All of the above

16. Which of the following is an atom composed of?

A. Electrons

B. Protons
C. Neutrons

D. All of the above

17. The condition of a semiconductor diode can be determined quickly using a ________.

A. DDM

B. VOM

C. curve tracer

D. Any of the above

18. How many valence electrons does a silicon atom have?

A. 1

B. 2

C. 3

D. 4

19. What is the resistor value of an ideal diode in the region of conduction?

A. 0 ohms

B. 5 k ohms

C. Undefined

D. Infinity

20. Calculate the power dissipation of a diode having ID = 40 mA.

A. 28 mW

B. 28 W

C. 280 mW

D. Undefined

21. Calculate static resistance RD of a diode having ID = 30 mA and VD = 0.75 V.

A. 25 ohms

B. 40 ohms
C. 0.04 ohms

D. 0.025 ohms

22. In which of the following is the light intensity measured?

A. Candela

B. Efficacy

C. Flux

D. Illumination

23. Calculate ID if RD = 30 and VD = 0.84 V.

A. 28 mA

B. 0.028 mA

C. 2.8 A

D. 280 micro A

24. Which of the following elements is most frequently used for doping pure Ge or Si?

A. Boron

B. Gallium

C. Indium

D. All of the above

25. Calculate the temperature coefficient in %/° C of a 10-V nominal Zener diode at 25° C if the nominal
voltage is 10.2 V at 100° C.

A. 0.0238

B. 0.0251

C. 0.0267

D. 0.0321

26. In general, LEDs operate at voltage levels from ________ V to ________ V.

A. 1.0, 3.0

B. 1.7, 3.3
C. 0.5, 4.0

D. None of the above

27. Determine the nominal voltage for the Zener diode at a temperature of 120° C if the nominal voltage
is 5.1 volts at 25° C and the temperature coefficient is 0.05%/° C.

A. 4.6 V

B. 4.86 V

C. 5.1 V

D. 5.34 V

28. What is the maximum power rating for LEDs?

A. 150 mW

B. 500 mW

C. 1W

D. 10 W

29. The ________ diode model is employed most frequently in the analysis of electronic systems.

A. ideal device

B. simplified

C. piecewise-linear

30. What is the value of the transition capacitance for a silicon diode when VD = 0? (Choose the best
answer.)

A. 1 pF

B. 3 pF

C. 5 pF

D. 10 pF

31. Which of the following ratings is true?

A. Si diodes have higher PIV and narrower temperature ranges than Ge diodes.

B. Si diodes have higher PIV and wider temperature ranges than Ge diodes.
C. Si diodes have lower PIV and narrower temperature ranges than Ge diodes.

D. Si diodes have lower PIV and wider temperature ranges than Ge diodes.

32. The ideal diode is a(n) ________ circuit in the region of nonconduction.

A. open

B. short

33. Which capacitance dominates in the forward-bias region?

A. Diffusion

B. Transition

C. Depletion

D. None of the above

34. In what state is a silicon diode if the voltage drop across it is about 0.7 V?

A. No bias

B. Forward bias

C. Reverse bias

D. Zener region

1. Generally the value of ac resistance is ________ the value of dc resistance at the same operating
point.

A. smaller than

B. larger than

C. the same as

D. unrelated to

2. The forward characteristics curve of a diode grows in ________ form.

A. linear

B. exponential

C. logarithmic
D. sinusoidal

3. An increase in temperature of a semiconductor can result in a ________ in the number of free

electrons in the material.

A. substantial increase

B. substantial decrease

C. slight decrease

D. no change

4. In the atomic lattice the ________ and ________ form the nucleus.

A. electrons, neutrons

B. electrons, protons

C. neutrons, protons

D. None of the above

5. Ge and Si have a(n) ________ coefficient in forward bias.

A. positive temperature

B. negative temperature

C. absolute temperature

D. temperature free

6. The term ________ is often used when comparing the resistance level of materials.

A. permittivity

B. inductivity

C. conductivity

D. resistivity

7. The reverse recovery time of most commercial switching diodes is in the range of ________.

A. picoseconds

B. a few nanoseconds

C. several microseconds
D. milliseconds

8. Diodes are connected ________ to increase the current-carrying capacity.

A. in series

B. in parallel

C. in parallel-series

D. None of the above

9. The ________ the current through a diode, the ________ the dc resistance level.

A. higher, lower

B. lower, lower

C. lower, higher

D. higher, higher

10. The heavier the current in a Zener diode in reverse bias, ________ dynamic resistance value.

A. the more the

B. the less the

C. there is substantially more

D. there is no change in the

11. In n-type material the ________ is called the majority carrier.

A. electron

B. hole

C. proton

D. neutron

12. Any electron that has left its parent atom has ________ energy state relative to any electron in the
atomic structure.

A. the same

B. a lower

C. a higher
D. an undefined

13. Varying the ________ can control the location of the Zener region.

A. forward current

B. doping levels

C. forward voltage

D. dc resistance

View Answer Discuss

14. The ac resistance of a diode is the ________ of the characteristic curve at the Q-point of operation.

A. reciprocal of the slope

B. slope

C. midpoint

D. average value

View Answer Discuss

15. The potential at which the characteristics curve vertical rise occurs is commonly referred to as the
________.

A. offset

B. threshold

C. firing potential

D. All of the above

16. The reverse saturation current Is will just ________ in magnitude for every 10° C increase in
temperature.

A. double

B. remain the same

C. halve

D. triple

17. The intensity of LED is greatest at ________ degrees and the least at ________ degrees.
A. 0, 90

B. 45, 90

C. 0, 45

D. 90, 180

18. Introducing those impurity elements that have ________ valence electrons creates the n-type
material.

A. 0

B. 3

C. 4

D. 5

19. The reverse-bias current ________ with the increase of temperature.

A. decreases

B. increases

C. remains the same

D. None of the above

20. The test current in a Zener diode IZT is the current defined by the ________ power level.

A. 0.25

B. 0.5

C. 0.75

D. 1.00

21. The temperature coefficient can be ________ for different Zener levels.

A. positive

B. negative

C. zero

D. All of the above

22. The diffused impurities with ________ valence electrons are called acceptor atoms.
A. 0

B. 3

C. 4

D. 5

23. A(n) ________ is the simplest of semiconductor devices.

A. diode

B. transistor

C. operational amplifier

D. SCR

24. The reverse-saturation current level is typically measured in ________.

A. pA

B. micro A

C. mA

D. A

25. The depletion width ________ in the forward bias, which results in having a majority flow across the
junction.

A. widens

B. remains unchanged

C. shrinks

D. widens and shrinks alternatively