3 Semiconductor Devices and Motor Controlling

School of Mechanical and
Industrial Engineering
Introduction To Mechatronics
(MEng3212)
Chapter Three
Semiconductor Devices and motor controlling
አዘጋጅ፡ ሙሉጌታ በላይ ኅዳር 2015 ዓ.ም

1
Introduction to Mechatronics
Semiconductor
 Metals have a large number of weakly bound electrons in what is

called their conduction band.
 When an electric field is applied to a metal, the electrons

migrate freely producing a current through the metal. Because of the
ease by which large currents can flow in metals, they are called
conductors.
 In contrast, other materials have atoms with valence electrons that are
tightly bound, and when an electric field is applied, the electrons do
not move easily.
2
Semiconductor
• These materials are called insulators and do not normally sustain

large electric currents.
 In addition, a very useful class of materials, elements in group IV of

the periodic table, have properties somewhere between conductors
and insulators. They are called semiconductors.
• Semiconductors such as silicon and germanium have current-

carrying characteristics that depend on temperature or the amount of
light falling on them.
3
Semiconductor
 when a voltage is applied across a semiconductor, some of the

valence electrons easily jump to the conductance band and then move
in the electric field to produce a current, although smaller than that
which would be produced in a conductor.
• In a semiconductor crystal, a valence electron can jump to the

conduction band, and its absence in the valence band is called a hole.
• A valence electron from a nearby atom can move to the hole, leaving
another hole in its former place.
4
Semiconductor
• The properties of pure semiconductor crystals can be significantly

changed by inserting small quantities of elements from group III or
group V of the periodic table into the crystal lattice of the
semiconductor.
• These elements, known as dopants, can be diffused or implanted

into semiconductors.
• Properties really get interesting when different amounts and different

types of dopants are added to semiconductors.
5
Semiconductor
• Silicon has four valence electrons that form symmetrical electron

bonds in the crystal lattice.
• Arsenic or phosphorous from group v is added to the crystal lattice,

one of the five valence electrons in each dopant atom remains freer
to move around.
• The dopant is called a donor element because it enhances the

electron conductivity of the semiconductor.
• The resulting semiconductor is called n-type silicon due to the
electrons available in the crystal lattice as charge carriers.
6
Semiconductor
• Conversely, if the silicon is doped with boron or gallium from group

III, holes form due to missing electrons in the lattice where the so-
called acceptor dopant atoms have replaced silicon atoms.
• This is because the dopant atom only has three valence electrons.
• The resulting semiconductor is called p-type silicon due to the holes,

which are effectively positive charge carriers.
 In summary, the purpose for doping a semiconductor such as silicon
is to elevate and control the number of charge carriers in the
semiconductor.
7
Semiconductor
 In an n-type semiconductor, the charge carriers are electrons, and in a

p-type semiconductor, they are holes.
 Semiconductors are materials whose electrical properties lie between

Conductors and Insulators.
 Semiconductor device, electronic circuit component made from a

material that is neither a good conductor nor a good insulator (hence
semiconductor).
 Such devices have found wide applications because of their
compactness, reliability, and low cost.
8
Semiconductor
 As discrete components, they have found use in power devices,
optical sensors, and light emitters including solid-state lasers.
9
Semiconductors are mainly two types
1. Intrinsic (Pure) Semiconductors
2. Extrinsic (Impure) Semiconductors
 Intrinsic Semiconductor: does not have any kinds of impurities,

behaves as an Insulator at 0k(absolute zero) and behaves as a
Conductor at higher temperature is known as Intrinsic
Semiconductor or Pure Semiconductors.
 0k(absolute zero: It is the temperature at which the particles in a
substance are motionless. The electrons will not have the energy to
move into the conduction band. Thus, there is no conductivity at 0 K
in intrinsic semiconductors and it behaves as an insulator.
10
Intrinsic Semiconductor
 Example: Germanium and Silicon (4th group elements)
 They possess diamond cubic crystalline structure.
11
Carrier Concentration in Intrinsic Semiconductor
 When a suitable form of Energy is supplied to a Semiconductor

then electrons take transition from Valence band to Conduction
band.
 Hence a free in a conduction band and simultaneously free hole in

Valence band is formed, This phenomenon is known as Electron -
Hole pair generation.
 In Intrinsic Semiconductor the Number of Conduction electrons will

be equal to the Number of Vacant sites or holes in the valence band.
12
Extrinsic Semiconductors
 The Extrinsic Semiconductors are those in which impurities of large

quantity are present. Usually, the impurities can be either 3rd group
elements or 5th group elements.
 Based on the impurities present in the Extrinsic Semiconductors,

they are classified into two categories
1. N-type semiconductors
2. P-type semiconductors
13
N-type:
 A N-type material is one in which electrons are majority charge

carriers i.e. they are negatively charged materials (---).
 When any pentavalent element such as Phosphorous Arsenic or

Antimony is added to the intrinsic Semiconductor, four electrons
are involved in covalent bonding with four neighboring pure
semiconductor atoms.
14
 The fifth electron is weakly bound to the parent atom. And even
for lesser thermal energy it is released Leaving the parent atom
positively ionized.
 The Intrinsic Semiconductors doped with pentavalent impurities are

called N-type Semiconductors.
 The energy level of fifth electron is called donor level.

 The donor level is close to the bottom of the conduction band most
of the donor level electrons are excited in to the conduction band at
room temperature and become the Majority charge carriers.
15
 Hence in N-type Semiconductors electrons are Majority carriers and

holes are Minority carriers .
Carrier Concentration in N-type Semiconductor
 Consider Nd. is the donor concentration i.e., the number of donor

atom per unite volume of the material and Ed is the donor energy
level.
 At very low temperatures all donor levels with electrons

 With increase of temperature more and more donor get ionized and
the density of the electrons in the conduction band increases.
16
 As the temperature is increased more and more donor atoms are

ionized.
 Further increase in temperature results in generation of Electron -

hole pairs due to breading of covalent bonds and the material tends
to behave in intrinsic manner.
2. P-type semiconductors
 A P-type material is one in which holes are majority carriers i.e. they
are positively charged materials (+++).
17
 When a trivalent elements such as Al, Ga or Indium have three

electrons in their outer most orbits , added to the intrinsic
semiconductor all the three electrons of Indium are engaged in
covalent bonding with the three neighboring Si atoms.
 Indium needs one more electron to complete its bond. This electron
maybe supplied by Silicon , there by creating a vacant electron site
or hole on the semiconductor atom.
18
 Indium accepts one extra electron, the energy level of this impurity
atom is called acceptor level and this acceptor level lies just above
the valence band.
 These type of trivalent impurities are called acceptor impurities and

the semiconductors doped the acceptor impurities are called P-type
semiconductors.
 Even at relatively low temperatures, these acceptor atoms get

ionized taking electrons from valence band and thus giving rise to
holes in valence band for conduction.
19
 Thus holes are more in number than electrons and hence holes are
majority carriers and electros are minority carriers in P-type
semiconductors.
 Due to ionization of acceptor atoms only holes and no electrons are

created.
20
Diode
 A diode is a semiconductor device that essentially acts as a one-

way switch for current.
 It allows current to flow easily in one direction, but severely restricts

current from flowing in the opposite direction.
21
JUNCTION DIODE
Contemporary electronic devices are produced by creating
microscopic interfaces between differently doped areas within
semiconductor material.
 If a p-type region of silicon is created adjacent to an n-type region, a
pn junction is the result.
 The p-type side of the diode is referred to as the anode, and
the n-type side is called the cathode.
 pn junction, electrons from the n-type silicon can diffuse to occupy
the holes in the p-type silicon, creating is called a depletion region.
 A small electric field develops across this thin depletion region due to
the diffusion of electrons.
 Depletion region: it is formed from a conducting region by
removal of all free charge carriers, leaving none to carry a
current.
22
JUNCTION DIODE
• If a voltage source is connected to the pn junction with the positive
side of the voltage source connected to the anode and the negative
side connected to the cathode forming a complete circuit, the diode is
said to be forward biased.
• The applied voltage overcomes the contact potential and shrinks the
depletion region.
• The anode in effect becomes a source of holes and the cathode
becomes a source of electrons so that holes and electrons are
continuously replenished at the junction.
• The anode is connected to the n-type silicon and the cathode to the p-
type silicon, the depletion region is enlarged, inhibiting diffusion of
electrons and thus current; the diode is reverse biased.
23
JUNCTION DIODE
Figure 1 pn junction characteristics.
Therefore, a pn junction passes current in only one direction. It is

known as a silicon diode and is sometimes referred to as a rectifier.
24
p-n junction
 The p-n junction is at the heart of electronics technology. Most
electronics is silicon based, that is, the devices are made of silicon.
 Silicon wafers are subjected to special procedures which result in
what is called p-type silicon material and n-type silicon material.
 When a P-type Semiconductor is joined together with an N-type
Semiconductor a PN junction is formed(known as a Semiconductor
Diode).
 Semiconductor diodes are widely used in Rectifiers which converts
input AC signal into DC output signal.
 Initially both the p-type and n-type areas of the diode are totally
neutral
25
p-n junction
 However, the concentration of positive and negative carriers is quite
different on opposite sides of the junction and a thermal energy-
powered diffusion of positive carriers into the n-type material and
negative carriers into the p-type material occurs.
 The n-type material acquires an excess of positive charge near the
junction and the p-type material acquires an excess of negative
charge.
 Eventually diffuse charges build up and an electric field is created
which drives the minority charges and eventually equilibrium is
reached.
 A region develops at the junction called the depletion layer. This
region is essentially unhoped (it is just intrinsic silicon).
26
p-n junction
27
Diodes
• Electronic devices created by bringing together a p-type and n-type
region within the same semiconductor lattice. Used for rectifiers,
LED etc.
 It is represented by the following symbol, where the arrow

indicates the direction of positive current flow
 The boundary between the p-type and n-type regions is called the
junction
28
Diodes
 At the p-n junction, electrons from the n-side move to the p-side and
recombine with the holes.
 Holes from the p-side similarly move into the n-side, where they
recombine with electrons.
 As a result of this flow, the n-side has a net positive charge, and the
p-side has a net negative charge.
 The region around the junction is left with neither holes nor free
electrons.
 This neutral region which has no charge carriers is called the
depletion layer.
 This layer which has no charge carrier is a poor conductor of
electricity.
29
Diodes
Forward Bias and Reverse Bias

 Forward Bias : Connect positive of the Diode to positive of
supply…negative of Diode to negative of supply
 Reverse Bias: Connect positive of the Diode to negative of
supply…negative of diode to positive of supply.
Forward Bias
 if the p-type side is made positive with respect to the n-type side the
height of the barrier is reduced
 more majority charge carriers have sufficient energy to surmount it
30
Diodes
 the diffusion current therefore increases while the drift current
remains the same
 there is thus a net current flow across the junction which increases
with the applied voltage
Reverse Biased
 When an external voltage is applied to the PN junction making

the P side negative with respect to the N side the diode is said to
be Reverse Biased (R.B.).
 The barrier P N increases. The depletion band widens preventing
the movement of majority carriers across the junction.
 diode has a very high resistance.
31
Diodes
Characteristics of Diode
 Diode always conducts in one direction.
 Diodes always conduct current when “Forward Biased” ( Zero
resistance)
 Diodes do not conduct when Reverse Biased (Infinite resistance)
An ideal diode passing electricity in one direction but not the

other
 One application of diodes is in rectification 32
Half wave rectifier
 A half-wave rectifier converts an AC signal to DC by passing

either the negative or positive half-cycle of the waveform and
blocking the other.
 Half-wave rectifiers can be easily constructed using only one

diode, but are less efficient than full-wave rectifiers.
33
half-wave rectifier
 In practice, no real diode has ideal characteristics but
semiconductor p-n junctions make good diodes
 To understand such devices we need to look at some properties of
materials
34
Full wave rectifier
 A full wave rectifier is defined as a rectifier that converts the

complete cycle of alternating current into pulsating DC.
 Unlike half wave rectifiers that utilize only the half wave of the
input AC cycle, full wave rectifiers utilize the full cycle.
 use of a diode bridge reduces the time for which the capacitor has
to maintain the output voltage and thus reduced the ripple voltage
35
Full-wave rectifier
36
Reading assignment
37
Electrical Properties of Solids
• Semiconductors are materials whose electrical conductivities are
higher than those of insulators but lower that those of conductors.
• Silicon, Germanium, Gallium, Arsenide, Indium, Antimonite and
cadmium sulphide are some commonly used semiconductors.
• Semiconductors have negative temperature coefficients of
resistance, i.e. as temperature increases resistivity deceases
Energy Band Diagram
Energy band diagram shows the

bottom edge of conduction band,
Ec , and top edge of valence band, Ev .
Ev and Ec are separated by the band
gap energy , Eg .
38
Energy Bands in Insulators and Conductors
39
Energy Bands in Semiconductors
 Forbidden band small for

semiconductors.
 Less energy required or electron to
move from valence to conduction
band.
 A vacancy (hole) remains when an
electron leaves the valence band.
 Hole acts as a positive charge carrier
to conduction band
40
Figure 2 Silicon diode.
Figure 3 Examples of common diodes.
 A diode is useful as a
rectifier, where it passes only
the positive half or the
negative half of an AC signal.
Figure 4 Diode check valve analogy. 41
• Rectifier circuits are used in the design of power supplies, where AC
power must be transformed into DC power for use in electronic
devices and digital circuits.
• The important specifications that differentiate diodes are the
maximum forward current and the maximum reverse bias voltage
where breakdown occurs.
42
Zener Diode
 Reflect back on the current-voltage relationship for a diode. Note that
when a diode is reverse biased with a large enough voltage, the
diode allows a large reverse current to flow. This is called diode
breakdown.
 A special class of diodes is designed to exploit this characteristic.
They are known as zener, avalanche, or voltage-regulator diodes.
In summary, zener diodes are useful in circuits where it is necessary to
derive smaller regulated voltages from a single higher-voltage
source.
43
Voltage Regulators
Although the zener diode voltage regulator is cheap and simple to use,
it has some drawbacks: The output voltage cannot be set to a
precise value, and regulation against source ripple and changes in
load is limited.
Special semiconductor devices are designed to serve as voltage
regulators, some for fixed positive or negative values and others easy
to adjust to a desired, nonstandard value.
44
Optoelectronic Diodes
• Light-emitting diodes are diodes that emit photons when forward
biased.
• The positive lead, or anode, is usually the longer of the two leads.
• The LED is usually encased in a colored plastic material that enhances
the wavelength generated by the diode and sometimes helps focus the
light into a beam.
• LEDs are manufactured to produce a variety of colors, but red, yellow,
and green are usually the most common and least expensive.
45
Optoelectronic Diodes
•• Earlier we said that a pn junction is sensitive to light. Special
diodes, called photodiodes, are designed to detect photons
• Note that it is the reverse current that flows through the diode
when sensing light.
• It takes a considerable number of photons to provide detectable
voltages with these devices.
 The photodiode is based on
quantum effects.
 If photons excite carriers in a
reverse-biased pn junction, a
very small current proportional
to the light intensity flows.
Figure 4 Light-emitting diode.
The sensitivity depends on
the wavelength of the light.
46
BIPOLAR JUNCTION TRANSISTOR
• The bipolar junction transistor was the salient invention that led to the
electronic age, integrated circuits, and ultimately the entire digital world.
• The transistor has truly revolutionized human existence by impacting
practically everything in our every day lives.
• semiconductor diode consists of adjacent regions of p-type and n-type
silicon, each connected to a lead.
• A bipolar junction transistor (BJT), in contrast, consists of three adjacent
regions of doped silicon, each of which is connected to an external lead.
• There are two types of BJTs: npn and pnp transistors. most common type is
the npn BJT
• It consists of a thin region or layer of p-type silicon sandwiched between two
regions or layers of n-type silicon.
• Three leads are connected to the three regions, and they are called the
collector, base, and emitter.
• As denoted by the bold n in Figure, the n-type silicon in the emitter is more
heavily doped than the collector, so the collector and emitter are47 not
interchangeable.
Figure 6 pnp bipolar junction transistor.

Figure 5 npn bipolar junction transistor.
48
 To understand how the npn BJT functions, forward biased ( VB > VE ),

electrons diffuse from the emitter n-type region to the base p-type region.
Because the base-to-collector junction is reverse biased ( VC > VB), there is a
depletion region that would ordinarily prevent the flow of electrons from the base
region into the collector region.
 base region is manufactured to be very thin and the emitter n-type region is
more heavily doped than the base, most of the electrons from the emitter
accelerate through the base region with enough momentum to cross the depletion
region into the collector region without recombining with holes in the base region.
 Remembering that conventional current is in the opposite direction of electron
motion, the result is that a small base current IB flows from the base to the emitter
and a larger current IC flows from the collector to the emitter.
 The small base current controls a larger collector current, and therefore the BJT
functions as a current amplifier.
49
• collector current is proportional to the base current with an amplification factor
known as the beta (ꞵ) for the transistor.
• Because of the BJT’s base-collector current characteristics, it can be used to amplify
current or to simply switch current on and off.
Common Emitter Transistor Circuit
 The characteristics of the common emitter transistor circuit can be summarized
by plotting the collector current IC versus the collector-emitter voltage VCE for
different values of base current IB.
• The transistor has a cutoff region (where no collector current flows), an active
region (where collector current is proportional to base current), and a saturation
region (where collector current is strictly controlled by the collector circuit,
assuming sufficient base current).
• When designing a transistor switch, we need to guarantee that the transistor is fully
saturated when it is on.
Bipolar Transistor Switch
collector-to-emitter circuit can be replaced by a very high impedance or, for all
practical purposes, an open circuit
50
Bipolar Transistor Packages
 The small-signal transistor packages are
often the TO-92, and the power
transistor packages are the TO-220.
 Surface mount technology is becoming
increasingly popular for use on
production printed circuit boards, but
Figure 7 Models for
transistor switch states.
such devices are less useful for
prototyping because of their small size.
Figure 8 Bipolar Figure 9 Various common transistor packages.

transistor packages.
 metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs
51
Phototransistor and Optoisolator
• A special class of transistor is the phototransistor, whose junction

between the base and emitter acts as a photodiode.
• LEDs and phototransistors are often found in pairs, where the LED is
used to create the light, and this light in turn biases the phototransistor.
• An Optoisolator is composed of an LED and a phototransistor

separated by a small gap.
52
FIELD-EFFECT TRANSISTORS
Field-effect transistor (FET) that operates on a different principle
than the BJT but serves a similar role in mechatronic system design.
 Both the BJT and FET are three-terminal devices allowing us to draw
analogies between their function and how they are used in circuits.
Both BJTs and FETs operate by controlling current between two
terminals using a voltage applied to a third terminal.
forward bias of the base-to-emitter junction of the BJT allows charge
carriers to enter a thin base region from the emitter, where they are
attracted to the collector, resulting in a large collector current
controlled by the much smaller base current.
BJT is a current amplifier. In contrast, with a FET, the electric field
produced by a voltage on one electrode controls the availability of
charge carriers in a narrow region, called a channel, through which a
53
current can be made to flow.
• Therefore, a FET can be described as a transconductance amplifier, which
means the output current is controlled by an input voltage.
• The nomenclature describing the FET is as follows. The control electrode in
the FET, called the gate, is analogous to the base of the BJT.
• In contrast to the BJT base, the FET gate draws no direct current (DC)
because it is insulated from the substrate to which it is attached.
• A conducting channel, whose conductivity is controlled by the gate, lies
between the drain, which is analogous to the BJT collector, and the source,
which is analogous to the BJT emitter.
• There are three families of FETs: enhancement-mode metal-oxide-
semiconductor FETs (MOSFETs), depletion mode MOSFETs, and junction
field-effect transistors (JFETs).
54
• Each of these families is available in p-channel and n-channel varieties.
• Understanding the different families and varieties of FETs is somewhat
complicated when encountering them for the first time, so we focus
primarily on the widely used n-channel enhancement mode MOSFET.
• when a positive DC voltage is applied to the gate, an electric field formed in
the substrate below the gate repels holes in the p-type substrate leaving a
narrow layer or channel in the substrate in which electrons predominate.
• This is referred to as an n-channel in the p-type substrate. The substrate is
usually connected to the source internally so that the substrate-source pn
junction is not forward biased.
55
• This MOSFET has a p-type substrate and an n-type source and
drain that form pn junctions with the substrate.
• There is a thin silicon dioxide layer insulating the gate from
the substrate.
• MOSFET mimics a very large resistor (~10 ^8 - 10 ^12Ω
), and no current flows between the drain and source. The
MOSFET is said to be in cutoff.
Figure 10 n- channel enhancement-
• Vgs is gradually increased beyond a gate-to source threshold mode MOSFET.
voltage Vt, the n-channel begins to form.
• Vt depends on the particular MOSFET considered but a
• typical value is about 2V. Then as Vds is increased from 0,
conduction occurs in the n-channel due to a flow of electrons
from source to drain.
• The drain current Id, by convention, is shown in the direction
opposite to electron flow. Figure 11 Enhancement-mode
• a subtle feature of the n-channel is that it is wider near the MOSFET n-channel formation.
source than at the drain because the electric field is larger due
to the larger difference between Vg and ground at the source
end and the smaller difference between Vg and Vdd at the With a positive Vgs larger than Vt , as Vds
drain end. is increased from 0, we enter the active
region, also called the ohmic region, of the
MOSFET. 56
• when Vgs - Vt reaches Vdd, there is no longer an electric field at the
drain end of the MOSFET.
• Therefore, the width of the n-channel shrinks to a minimum value
close to the drain resulting in what is called pinch-off.
• This pinch-off limits a further increase in drain current, and the
MOSFET is said to be in saturation.
• In saturation, the current is almost constant with further increases in
Vds.
• MOSFET application we consider is switching power to a load.
• MOSFET switch is very easy to design because the gate draws
practically no steady state current and use of a MOSFET as an analog
switch.
57
End of Chapter Three
Next Lecture:
Chapter Four: Sensor Communication Design
58

3 Semiconductor Devices and Motor Controlling

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

3 Semiconductor Devices and Motor Controlling

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

School of Mechanical and

አዘጋጅ፡ ሙሉጌታ በላይ ኅዳር 2015 ዓ.ም

 Metals have a large number of weakly bound electrons in what is

 When an electric field is applied to a metal, the electrons

• These materials are called insulators and do not normally sustain

 In addition, a very useful class of materials, elements in group IV of

• Semiconductors such as silicon and germanium have current-

 when a voltage is applied across a semiconductor, some of the

• In a semiconductor crystal, a valence electron can jump to the

• The properties of pure semiconductor crystals can be significantly

• These elements, known as dopants, can be diffused or implanted

• Properties really get interesting when different amounts and different

• Silicon has four valence electrons that form symmetrical electron

• Arsenic or phosphorous from group v is added to the crystal lattice,

• The dopant is called a donor element because it enhances the

• Conversely, if the silicon is doped with boron or gallium from group

• The resulting semiconductor is called p-type silicon due to the holes,

 In an n-type semiconductor, the charge carriers are electrons, and in a

 Semiconductors are materials whose electrical properties lie between

 Semiconductor device, electronic circuit component made from a

 As discrete components, they have found use in power devices,

optical sensors, and light emitters including solid-state lasers.

1. Intrinsic (Pure) Semiconductors

2. Extrinsic (Impure) Semiconductors

 Intrinsic Semiconductor: does not have any kinds of impurities,

 Example: Germanium and Silicon (4th group elements)

 They possess diamond cubic crystalline structure.

 When a suitable form of Energy is supplied to a Semiconductor

 Hence a free in a conduction band and simultaneously free hole in

 In Intrinsic Semiconductor the Number of Conduction electrons will

 The Extrinsic Semiconductors are those in which impurities of large

 Based on the impurities present in the Extrinsic Semiconductors,

 A N-type material is one in which electrons are majority charge

 When any pentavalent element such as Phosphorous Arsenic or

 The Intrinsic Semiconductors doped with pentavalent impurities are

 The energy level of fifth electron is called donor level.

 Hence in N-type Semiconductors electrons are Majority carriers and

Carrier Concentration in N-type Semiconductor

 Consider Nd. is the donor concentration i.e., the number of donor

 At very low temperatures all donor levels with electrons

 As the temperature is increased more and more donor atoms are

 Further increase in temperature results in generation of Electron -

 When a trivalent elements such as Al, Ga or Indium have three

 These type of trivalent impurities are called acceptor impurities and

 Even at relatively low temperatures, these acceptor atoms get

 Due to ionization of acceptor atoms only holes and no electrons are

 A diode is a semiconductor device that essentially acts as a one-

 It allows current to flow easily in one direction, but severely restricts

Figure 1 pn junction characteristics.

Therefore, a pn junction passes current in only one direction. It is

 It is represented by the following symbol, where the arrow

Forward Bias and Reverse Bias

 When an external voltage is applied to the PN junction making

An ideal diode passing electricity in one direction but not the

 A half-wave rectifier converts an AC signal to DC by passing

 Half-wave rectifiers can be easily constructed using only one

 A full wave rectifier is defined as a rectifier that converts the

Energy band diagram shows the

 Forbidden band small for

Figure 2 Silicon diode.

Figure 3 Examples of common diodes.

Figure 6 pnp bipolar junction transistor.

 To understand how the npn BJT functions, forward biased ( VB > VE ),