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1
Electrical Properties
Units and Definitions: V = voltage (volt)
• Ohm’s Law V = IR I = current (amp)
R = resistance (ohm)
• Current density J = I/A
• Electric field E = V/l, l = distance
• Electrical conductivity J = E, = 1/
• Resistance and conductance R = l/ A
g = 1/R (ohm-1, S)
2
Classical Model of Electronic
Conduction in Metals
• n conduction electrons/volume
• Apply electric field E to give electron accel.
of eE/m, where m = electron mass
• Assume = average time between collisions
eE
v Drift velocity
d m
ne 2
J nev E Current density
d m
3
Classical Model of Electronic
Conduction in Metals
= mobility
4
Question
ne2
m
For most metals, Metal (ppm/
K)
1 dR 1 d
4 103 /K Al 23.1
R dT dT
Ag 18.9
The primary contribution to this change is that:
Cu 16.5
(a)n decreases with increasing temperature
(b) decreases with increasing temperature
Fe 11.8
5
Solution
ne2
m
For most metals, Metal (ppm/
K)
1 dR 1 d
4 103 /K Al 23.1
R dT dT
Ag 18.9
The primary contribution to this change is that:
Cu 16.5
(a)n decreases with increasing temperature
(b) decreases with increasing temperature
Fe 11.8
6
Example
Given Ag with room temperature electrical conductivity of
6.3 107 (ohm-m)-1 and that there are 5.85 1022 silver
atoms per cm3, each with one conduction electron. Calculate
the electron mobility and average time between collisions.
7
Solution
Given Ag with room temperature electrical conductivity of
6.3 107 (ohm-m)-1 and that there are 5.85 1022 silver
atoms per cm3, each with one conduction electron. Calculate
the electron mobility and average time between collisions.
m 0.0067 9.11031
19
3.83 1014
s
e 1.6 10 8
Thermal Velocity and Drift Velocity
At temperature T, the thermal velocity of an electron Vth is:
3kT
Vth 1.17 105 m /s at 300K
m
e
Drift velocity Vd at electric field E is: d
V E E
m
Use Ag as an example and for E = 2 V/m:
Vd 0.0067 2 0.0134 m/s
Why is the drift velocity so much smaller than Vth ?
occupied
Closely
spaced
levels
10
Energy Band Model for
Electronic Conduction
Conduction
electron
Conduction band
Bandgap Thermal
excitation
Valence band
Hole
Electric field E
Valence band
Hole
12
Answer
Conduction
electron
Conduction band
Electric field E
Valence band
Hole
VB electrons + holes 15
Intrinsic Semiconductors
[electrons][holes] Eg
C exp
[VB] kBT
Eg
np C'exp
kBT
1/T
18
Question
Can metals act as thermistors?
• Of course, they can.
• Recall that the resistance of typical metals increases by
0.4% per K, but ………
ln
19
1/T
Extrinsic Semiconductors
• When impurities are introduced into a
semiconductors, they change the electrical
properties
• Two types: N and P
20
N-Type Semiconductors
• Start with Si (group IV element)
• Introduce antimony Sb (group V) impurities
• Sb has one more valence electron than
needed for bonding --> loosely bound --->
easily excited to the conduction band
• Sb is known as a donor or N-type impurity
21
N-Type Semiconductors
Conduction band
Donor levels
Valence band
Sb Sb+ + e
22
N-Type Semiconductors
• What is (are) the source(s) of conduction electrons in
N-type semiconductors?
- valence electrons?
- N-type dopants?
• What is (are) the source(s) of holes in n-type
semiconductors?
- valence electrons?
- N-type dopants?
• n=p? 23
N-Type Semiconductors
Si
Sb
covalent
bond
conduction
electron
24
N-Type Semiconductors
• Energy separation between donor levels and
bottom of conduction band ~ 40-50 meV
• KE of thermal electrons at room temperature ~ 40
meV
• Each donor provides one conduction electron
• For Si, there are 5 1022 atoms/cm3. One ppm
donor concentration --> 5 1016 conduction
electrons/cm3 >> ni = 1.45 1010 conduction
electrons/cm3
25
N-Type Semiconductors
• Since np = constant, large n means small p
• Electrons are known as majority charge
carriers
• Material is neutral - the negative charges of
conduction electrons are balanced by
positive charges of ionized donors.
26
Charge Distribution
Si
Si
Conduction electrons
Valence electrons
28
N-Type Semiconductors
Si
Sb
covalent
bond
conduction
electron
29
P-Type Semiconductors
• Start with Si (group IV element)
• Introduce aluminum (group III element) impurities
• Aluminum has one less valence electrons than
needed for bonding --> neighboring electron easily
excited to satisfy the bonding requirement -->
creating a vacancy in the valence band
• Aluminum is known as an acceptor or P-type
impurity
30
Conduction band
Al Al- + h
31
P-Type Semiconductors
• Holes = majority charge carriers, with
positive effective charge
• Positive charge balanced by ionized
acceptors (negative charge)
32
Questions
Consider introducing silicon impurity into
otherwise pure gallium arsenide.
• What is the carrier type if silicon atoms
(valence = 4) go into gallium sites (valence
= 3)?
• What is the carrier type if silicon atoms go
into arsenic sites (valence = 5)?
33
Selected Semiconductor Devices
• Hall Probe
• PN Junction
• Transistor
36
Hall Probe
A Hall probe is a device to measure magnetic
field strength
B Top view
I I
VH
++++++
B field
out of
page
37
Hall Probe
39
PN Junction
• P-type SC - holes are majority charge carriers
• N-type SC - electrons are majority charge
carriers
• When placed in intimate contact, diffusion of
charge carriers occurs due to concentration
gradient - electric field across junction
• Equilibrium when electric field balances the
driving force for diffusion
40
PN Junction at Equilibrium
Els flowing to P-side:
n-SC p-SC
• P-side negative
• Electron energy
• CB and VB
Electron energy
Conduction band
Valence band
41
Current Flow in PN Junction
Conduction band
Valence band
p-SC
Valence band
42
Effect of Applied Voltage
eV Conduction band
eV Valence band
n-SC p-SC
43
Currents in a PN Junction
n-SC p-SC
eV I4
Conduction band
I1
Valence band
I1 I1 exp (eV/kBT)
I4 I4
Net electron current to the right = I1 exp (eV/kBT) - I1
44
PN Junction
I For Si PN junctions,
obtain substantial
currents when V >
0.6 volt
V
Forward bias
Reverse bias
+ - - +
N P N P
45
Sample Applications of PN
Junction Devices
• Rectification - converting AC to DC
• Light-emitting diodes and lasers
• Solar cells
• X-ray detectors
• Voltage regulators
46
Sample Applications of PN
Junction Devices
• Rectification - converting AC to DC
• Light-emitting diodes and lasers
• Solar cells
• X-ray detectors
• Voltage regulators
47
Rectifiers
Half-wave rectification
Full-wave rectification
48
Half-wave Rectification
Full-wave Rectification
49
Light Emitting Diodes (LED)
Conduction band
h Valence band
n-SC p-SC
h Valence band
n-SC p-SC
Light on, G1
53
Solar Cells: I-V Characteristics
kB T G
I 0V ln
e Io
Note that the output voltage increases with temperature and
solar intensity
54
Transistors
• Two broad types:
– Bipolar junction transistors
– Field effect transistors
• Two functions:
– Switch
– Amplifier
57
Transistors
• Two broad types:
– Bipolar junction transistors
– Field effect transistors
• Two functions:
– Switch
– Amplifier
58
Biopolar Junction Transistor
• Two types - NPN and PNP
• Consider NPN transistor. There are three
parts
– Emitter, heavily n-doped
– Base, p-doped
– Collector, lightly n-doped
59
NPN Transistor
CB
60
Transistor Action
IE = C [exp (eV/kBT) - 1 ]
RBE = V/IE is small
Transistor as an
R Amplifier C
B C
E
• When forward-biased and VBE > 0.6 volt, large current -->
device is ON
• When VBE < 0.6 or -ve (reverse-bias), small current -->
device is OFF
63
Electron Tunneling
• Benefit of electron tunneling every time we
switch on an electrical device
• When an insulator is thinner than 5 nm or
so, obtain electrical conduction
67
Electron Tunneling
V
Electron, energy E
Transmitted
by tunneling
Reflected
Probability of transmission
2m(V E)
exp2
2
s exp As V E
68
Applications of Electron
Tunneling
• Field-emission display
• Scanning tunneling microscope
69
Field Emission
Electron energy
Conduction electrons
tunneling into vacuum
z
Vacuum level after applied
Conduction
electric field E
electrons
= - eEz
70
How Big a Field?
= - eEz
Tunneling barrier thickness z = /eE
Set z = 10 nm, = 4 eV:
E = 4 V/10 nm = 4 x 108 V/m
Trick: use a sharp tip
Electric field above a sharp tip with radius R ~ V/R, where V
is the applied voltage.
71
Field emission image of single
crystal tungsten
72
Carbon nanotube
field emission lamps
73
Scanning Tunneling Microscopy
Probability of transmission
exp As1/ 2
V where A ~ 10.25 nm-1, s in nm,
and tunneling barrier in eV
74
Vertical Sensitivity of STM
• Consider changing the tip-surface spacing
by 0.1 nm
• For = 4 eV, the current changes by a factor
of exp(0.110.25 2) ~ e2, or a factor of 8.
75
STM image of graphite
76
Thermoelectric Effect
Thot
A B
Tcold
S = thermoelectric power or 77
Seebeck coefficient
Waterpot Generator
78
Thermoelectric Conversion Efficiency
0.3
0.25 ZT=5
Tcold = 400 K
0.2
Efficiency
ZT=2
0.15
0.1 ZT=1
0.05
0
0 100 200 300 400 500
dT(K)