INTRODUCTION

Let’s start with the introduction to semiconductors, some important properties and applications
of semiconductors, before going into details of history, evolution and uniqueness of semiconductor. In
order to develop proper understanding of semiconductor, take an electrical circuit consists of battery, a
bulb and a gap. If the gap is filled with metal, the charge will flow and the bulb lights up. If the gap is
filled with glass, no current will flow through the circuit and the light stays off. This is because the metal
is a conductor and glass is an insulator. Now fill the gap with the silicon wafer, the light still stays off.
Now heat up the silicon wafer, the bulb lights up. The silicon is an insulator at room temperature but
conducts electricity at high temperatures. That is why it is called semiconductor as its conductivity
changes with the environmental conditions. This special ability make semiconductors a perfect brand for
electronic devices. Circuits are small semiconductor switches called transistors are at the heart of
computer chips and enable them to do math and run programs. Semiconductor have enable electronics
become smaller, faster and more reliable.

The energy band gap determines either material is a conductor, semiconductor or an insulator.
Insulator have a very wide energy bandgap and it is impossible for electrons in the valence level to move
to the high energy level or conduction level. The metals have no energy bandgap at all, the electrons can
move to higher energy level with no problem and the current can flow easily. The semiconductor
materials have intermediate energy bandgap and the electrons can move from lower energy level to
higher energy level. The amount of heat applied determines the amount of electrons jump into the
higher energy band and the amount of current flow. Heat isn’t the only way to change the conductivity
of a semiconductor, light, electric current and electric fields especially in computers can also be used.
Computers are made up of semiconductors called transistors that switch between conducting and
insulating. Computers use electric field because heat is slow and will burn too much energy.

Some other properties of semiconductors that makes them different from metals includes
polarity, concentration and transport of charge carriers. Semiconductor can have both positive and
negative polarities while metal only have negatively charge carriers. The positively charge carriers in
semiconductors are called holes. The concentration of carriers in semiconductors is greater than
insulators and less than metals. The transport of charge carriers in metals is only through the process of
drift that is the current flow through application of electric field. While in semiconductor the transport
of charge carrier occurs in so many ways, which includes drift, diffusion and thermoelectric current.
Diffusion process depends on the difference of concentration of charge carriers at different points in
semiconductor. Thermoelectric effect depends on the difference of temperature at different points in
semiconductor and results in significant current flow.

HISTORY, EVOLUTION AND UNIQUENESS OF SEMICONDUCTOR TECHNOLOGY

In this sub-section, we will discuss the history of semiconductor technology and how
semiconductor technology evolved and become so important. Technology is the processing of material,
energy and information under suitable conditions to develop a useful product. If we get highly reliable
and performance product at less cost by providing stringent conditions, then the technology will be
called as Hi-Technology. Semiconductor technology is a material oriented Hi-technology that means it
involves processing of materials. Some of the stringent conditions for processing of semiconductor
technology includes perfect single crystal material and use of sophisticated equipment and ultra-clean
environment. Perfect single crystal material is obtained through regular arrangement of atoms
consuming a lot of energy and cost. Ultra-clean environment is another stringent condition, achieved
through use of sophisticated equipment, such as clean air benches. Cleanliness of environment is
termed as class of clean room. Class 10 clean room means there are maximum of 10 dust particles of
size fractions of micron. Apart from that, the chemicals used in the processing of semiconductor should
be clean. The water used in the semiconductor processing should be free from ions, called deionized
water. The cleanliness of water is described in resistivity of water. If the resistivity is more, the water will
be cleaner. The important property of semiconductor technology is that, unlike other technologies, it
becomes more user friendly with advancement in technology and performance of new products can be
predicted using relatively simple models.

Now we have explained the uniqueness of semiconductor technology, let’s talk about the
evolution process and history of semiconductor technology in detail. A lot of training is required in order
to play experimentally with the semiconductor technology, so the science came first then the
empiricism. In the evolution process of semiconductor technology, scientists, engineers and inventors
have a major role and contributed extensively. Scientists provide mathematical publication of new
knowledge. Engineers provide very simple formulae for design and product based on his experience and
knowledge of scientific principles. Inventors provide new combination of design and product. The
examples of this cycle in semiconductor technology are planar process and pocket calculator.

Let’s discuss the contribution of scientists, engineers and inventors and evolution of
semiconductor technology in chronological order. Let’s start from the period from 1820 to 1880. One
can trace it back to about 1820, the development that initiated the communications field was
Magnetism from electricity and vice-versa, given by Oersted Faraday (Scientist), includes the idea of
electromagnetic induction. After this, Morse (Inventor) came up and proposed the Telegraph. Then the
theory of Electromagnetism was given by Maxwell (Scientist). The development in solid state technology
started, in 1820, with thermoelectric property given by Seebeck (Scientist). Then the intrinsic property
and photovoltaic effect by Faraday (Scientist) and Becquerrel (Scientist) and the photoconductivity given
by Smith (Scientist). After all these properties, there was an inventor, named Braun, had an idea to use
this properties in materials and some materials that behave in peculiar fashion (neither like materials
nor insulators) and invented point-contact diode, till then the name semiconductor was not coined.
Then Hail (Scientist) provided the Hail effect.

Let’s move to the period from 1880 to 1920. In communications field, the telephone was invented
by Graham Bell (Inventor). Then the experimental proof of Electromagnetic waves was given by Hertz
(Scientist). Then wireless commination invention was given by Bose (Inventor) and Marconi (Inventor).
Marconi had major contribution than Bose. Then the invention of vacuum tube diode and triode that
helped in detection of radio waves, was given by Fleming Lee-de Forest (Inventor). Then the sinewave
oscillator was invented by Armstrong about how signals can be generated in communications field. In
solid-state technology field, Magnetoresistance was studied by Thompson (Scientist). Then Quantum
mechanics theory by Max Plank (Scientist) and photoelectric effect by Einstein (Scientist). Then in 1910,
the word semiconductor was coined.

Let’s move to the period from 1920 to 1960. In communications field, Herald Black (Engineer)
proposed negative feedback which was very good in building amplifiers. Then frequency modulation by
Armstrong. Then Pulse code modulation by Reeves and Information theory by Shannon (Engineer).
Quantum Mechanics theory was given by Sommerfield (Scientist). After 1920, because of the
importance of radar in World War 2, this is an important event that actually brought the
communications field and solid state field together. It was found that using the vacuum tube which was
used in detection in communications, high frequencies cannot be achieved. Point-contact diode was
used instead of vacuum tube diode to achieve high frequencies. So here the perfection of technology
started. Then the Semiconductor triode was invented by Hiel (Inventor) that worked on the field effect
transistor principle. In 1947, after the Energy band model theory of rectifying junctions, the bipolar
junction transistor was invented. That was the first transistor ever invented. Then the planar process
used for integrated circuits by Kilby and he was awarded Nobel Prize on his work on integrated circuits.

The main driving force behind evolution and advancement of semiconductor technology was the
need to improve communication. Before the invention of transistor, the device that was used for
amplification was vacuum tubes. The size of vacuum tubes was very large and they were fragile as well.
The first computer made up using vacuum tubes was very large. Another main problem of vacuum tubes
was the dissipation of heat. The transistor was probably the most important invention of the 20th
century. There were three men with extraordinary talent and very different personalities behind this
invention, experimental physicist Walter Brattain, theoretical physicist John Bardeen, and the team
leader Bill Shockley. They were also awarded with joint Nobel Prize in Physics for their contribution to
semiconductors.

Let’s move to the period from 1960 to 2000. In their period, there were a lot of devices proposed
in solid state field. MESFET proposed by Mead (Engineer). Then we had Medium Scale Integration that is
the integration of devices into IC started. Then we had Large scale integration been used for Random
Access Memory, Analog to Digital converters and Microprocessors. Then in 1980, High Electron Mobility
Transistors were invented and then the VLSI having 64K Random Access Memory. Then 3D integration
optoelectronics were proposed that is integration in 3 planes. Then most recently, we had Nano
electronics made by Nano crystalline materials.

USE OF SILICON AS SEMICONDUCTOR MATERIAL

Like metals, anything with freely moving charged particles will conduct electricity. In non-metals,
the electrons in valence shell are not free to move around. Silicon have a tetrahedral arrangement
(Figure 1, Appendix) and it’s found between the metals and the non-metals in the staircase of the
periodic table. If we look at the individual atom of silicon (Figure 2, Appendix), it is in Group 14 and has
four valence electrons and on providing enough heat, one of the electrons might move to the
conduction band and leaving a hole. If we look at the silicon lattice (Figure 3, Appendix), on increasing
the temperature the electrons in the valence band will vibrate until, at certain temperature, some of the
electrons will move to the conduction band leaving the hole behind. Once they are in conduction band
they are free to move around and will move from hole to hole. As we increase the temperature, the
amount of electrons in the conduction band increase. On applying the potential difference, the electrons
will move towards the positive charge and away from the negative charge and that is conduction.

Both Silicon and Germanium have four valence electrons but silicon is preferred in semiconductor
industry. Atomic number of Silicon is 14 while atomic number of Germanium is 32. Silicon have 4
valence electrons in the third shell and are tightly bound due to closeness to the nucleus. While
Germanium have 4 valence electrons in the fourth shell and are loosely bound to the nucleus. This will
make Germanium unstable at high temperatures and will result in excessive reverse current losses.

REASON TO REPLACE SILICON WITH SILICON CARBIDE AND IMPORTANCE OF

SILICON CARBIDE IN SEMICONDUCTOR INDUSTRY
Apart from Silicon having bandgap energy of 1.1 Electron Volt, there are other semiconductor
materials such as silicon carbide, zinc oxide, and gallium nitride with bandgap energies of 3.3, 3.4 and
3.4 Electron Volt respectively. Semiconductor materials like silicon carbide have much wider energy
bandgap as compared to silicon provides higher breakdown electric field, which means the material can
block higher voltages at higher temperatures with lower leakage current, which results in lower energy
loss. Silicon carbide also provides lower resistance at higher temperature and switching frequency which
results in faster and compact power conversion system and higher energy efficiency. Because of wider
bandgap, silicon carbide have less thickness as compared to the silicon. Less thickness of silicon carbide
provides less resistance and the power losses will be less and energy efficiency will be higher. Silicon
carbide is also the only semiconductor other than silicon that can oxide thermally at high temperature to
form silicon dioxide, which is the most studied insulator and have applications in MOSFET. That is why
silicon carbide is a potential replacement of silicon.

The crystalline structure of silicon carbide is shown in Figure 4 (See Appendix). Silicon carbide
devices have wide range of applications in power electronics such as IT and consumer, automotive
industry, Commercial Industry and Military section. Silicon Carbide also have applications in transistors
such as MOSFET, IGBT, and JFET. Wide bandgap silicon carbide technology will enable more compact
and efficient power electronic devices for electric vehicles, renewable power interconnection, industrial-
scale variable speed drive motors and a smarter flexible grid in addition to high performance defense
applications. The importance of power and energy savings and efficiency of silicon carbide in
semiconductor industry can be verified by the statement of Co-founder of Cree Inc., J.W. Palmour which
quotes “Energy savings from SIC diodes till date is equivalent to elimination of at least one coal fire
power plant [4].”

In ideal case of a power switch, the resistance should be zero but this ideal case is not possible.
Lower resistance is required for smaller, faster and more energy efficient power switches. Silicon carbide
have significantly better ideal resistance properties than silicon but channel resistance limits the
performance of silicon carbide. In MOSFET, the n-type region below the depletion region blocks the high
voltage and the resistance provided by this region is called bulk resistance. And the resistance provided
by the depletion region or electron channel is called the channel resistance. Silicon carbide provides 350
times lower bulk resistance than silicon at same voltage. This bulk resistance property is great as lower
resistance results in lower energy losses. But silicon carbide provides 30 times higher channel resistance
than silicon. So silicon carbide is poor in terms of channel resistance but it’s small and comparable to
bulk resistance. The reason for this increase in channel resistance is due to defects or imperfections at
the silicon carbide and silicon dioxide interface. This imperfection results in electron traps at the
interface. The freely moving electrons in the channel region get affected by these traps and the mobility
of the electrons decreases resulting in increased channel resistance. The channel resistance of silicon
carbide transistors can be decreased through nitric oxide or nitrous oxide annealing process. The
annealing process is done by exposing the silicon dioxide to the nitric oxide and nitrous oxide gases.
REFERENCES

[1] C. Kittel, Introduction to Solid State Physics, Wiley, 1995.

[2] D. Neamen, Semiconductor Physics and Devices: Basic Principles.

[3] W. Shockley, Electrons and holes in semiconductors : with applications to transistor electronics, R.
E. Krieger Pub. Co, 1950.

[4] L. C. V. P. E. V. B. D. J. L. G. Y. W. J. R. M. O. S. R. S. T. A. A. A. B. a. C. S. J. W. Palmour, "Silicon

carbide power MOSFETs: Breakthrough performance from 900 V up to 15 kV," IEEE 26th
International Symposium on Power Semiconductor Devices & IC's (ISPSD), p. 79–82, 2014.
 APPENDIX
FIGURES

Figure 1. Tetrahedral Arrangement of Silicon

Figure 2. Individual Atom of Silicon

 Figure 3. Silicon Lattice

Figure 4. Crystalline Structure of Silicon Carbide