Semiconductor Diode

1. PN Junction - P-type material and N-type material is placed together on contact with each other. The majority carrier of P-type material is hole while N-type material is electron. The border between both the semiconductors is called pn junction. 2. Depletion Layer - When pn junction is formed, some electrons from the N-type material diffuse across the junction forming positive ions and combine with the holes from the P-type material forming negative ions. These areas where the charges are gone are called depletion layer and is located at the junction. 3. Barrier Potential - There is an electric field between the positive and negative ions. This electric field gets stronger as more electrons flow through until a point that the electrons are unable to overcome this electric field. Thus, acting as a barrier, it stops the electrons and holes from diffusing across the depletion layer. 4. Forward reverse bias - In forward bias, the negative source terminal is connected to N-type material while the positive terminal is connected to P-type material. This source will push the electrons from Ntype material to flow across the depletion layer if voltage is high enough. Thus, current flow in the diode easily. - In reverse bias, the positive source terminal is connected to N-type material while the positive terminal is connected to P-type material. This will cause the electrons and holes from the semiconductor to be attracted to each terminal creating a large depletion layer. Thus, no carriers flow through the junction resulting in no current. 5. Minority carrier current - In reverse bias, sometimes, there is minority charge on the sides of the junction which are produced thermally. Most of the minority charges recombine back but some manage to flow through the depletion region to the other side. This is why in reverse bias there is still a small current flowing through it called the saturation current.

Bipolar Junction Transistor (BJT)

1. Doping Levels - The base, thinnest is lightly doped, the emitter is heavily doped and the collector, thickest is averagely doped. 2. Emitter and Collector Diodes - Transistors have two junctions. One is between the emitter and the base while the other is between collector and the base. So, a transistor is like two diode connected back to back. 3. Forward and Reverse Bias - Usually, the transistor works on one forward biased and one reverse biased diode. The emitter-base diode is on forward bias while the collector-base diode is on reverse bias. 4. Base Current - For NPN transistor, when emitter-base diode is forward biased. The majority charges in emitter (electrons) will flow into the base but because the base is lightly doped and very thin. This cause most the majority charges (electrons) from emitter to flow across the base without combining with the bases majority charges (holes). Only 1 to 5% manages to recombine with charges from base (holes) and produce the base current. 5. Collector Current - Since collector-base diode is reverse biased. The majority charges from emitter region (electrons) reaching the collector diodes junction are swept through it due to lightly doped and very thin base. This results low barrier potential and allow majority carriers (electrons) to enter collector region and combine with minority charges of collector (holes). Then, the collector is recovered with number of lost charges (holes) from the source. This contributed to the collector current. 6. Emitter Current - The majority charges from base (holes) enter the emitter region and combine with the majority charges from emitter (electrons). The charges lost (electrons) are compensated by a same number of charges from the source. The emitter current is the sum of base current and collector current. 7. Bipolar Junction - This is why this type of transistor is called bipolar junction transistor because it uses both types of carrier, electrons and holes in the operation. The above explanation is all for a NPN transistor. For PNP transistor, the signs of all currents and voltages must be reversed.

Junction Field-Effect Transistor (JFET)

1. Channel and Gate - The channel is a uniformly doped bar of only one type of semiconductor. One end is called the Drain while the other is called Source. There is pn junction on both sides of the channel which means the sides are doped with the opposite type of materials from the channel. The sides are called Gate. 2. Drain Current - When potential difference is applied on drain and source, the current due to majority carriers is made to flow along from one end toward the other. 3. Reverse Bias - Gate-source junction is always in the reverse biasing during a normal operation of a JFET. This cause the depletion region to be formed around the pn junction. As the channel bar is relatively doped, the depletion regions extend more toward the channel bar more than in the heavily doped gate. 4. Field Effect - This depletion region in the bar which controls the conductance and current is called field. The field is formed more on the reverse biases area. 5. Pinch off voltage - Then, the effective width of channel decrease with the increase in depletion region. This will cause the carriers to have higher resistance when flowing through the channel. Thus, producing a smaller current. When the negative voltage of the gate is increase, the depletion region increase to a point where no current flow through it. This voltage is called the pinch off voltage. 6. Unipolar Junction - Thus, called unipolar junction because use only a type of carrier. The above explanation is for a N-channel JFET. For a P-channel JFET, the signs of all currents and voltages must be reversed.

Metal-Oxide Semiconductor Field-Effect Transistor (MOSFET)

1. Terminals - In a MOSFET, there are 3 terminals sometimes, 4. There are 2 heavily doped n+ regions which are called the Source and Drain. The Gate is formed by depositing a metal on the oxide layer of silicon dioxide which is in between of the 2 terminals. The rest are lightly doped p-type substrate. Sometimes there is the 4th terminal which is the earth terminal that functions to neutralize the MOSFET. 2. Inversion layer - When a small positive voltage is applied to the gate terminal, it will induce negative charges of the substrate because of the capacitive effect of the oxide layer. Thus, electrons which are minority carriers will be attracted to the gate forming an inversion layer between source and drain. This inversion layer is for the electron to flow through. 3. Drain Current - So, if voltage is applied onto the source and drain where drain is positive, the electrons will flow from the source to the drain producing drain current. 4. Enhancement Type - For an enhancement-type MOSFET, there will be no current when there is no voltage applied on gate terminal. This is because there will be no inversion layer for the electrons to flow through. By increasing positive voltage applied on the gate, the inversion layer increase and so, the drain current also increases. Threshold voltage is the minimum positive voltage required for the current to has defined value. 5. Depletion Type - For this depletion-type MOSFET, the region between source and drain is already doped with some n-type which is the same as the dopants in source and drain. Even though there is no voltage on gate terminal, there will still be current flowing through. If a negative voltage is applied on the gate, positive charges will be attracted to the gate terminal causing n-type layer to deplete making the channel less conductive. If a positive voltage is applied on the gate, same things happen like what happen in enhancement type MOSFET. The n-type layer will become bigger and more conductive. Therefore, drain current depends on the voltage applied on the gate terminal. The above explanation is for a N-channel MOSFET For a P-channel MOSFET, the signs of all currents and voltages must be reversed.