Elektronika Dasar

Billy Dovan Yuspancana

3715100012

TYPES OF DIODES

1. Schottky Barrier Diodes (SBD )

1.1. Definition
Schottky barrier diode is an extension of the oldest semiconductor device that is
the point contact diode.Here,the metal-semiconductor interface is a surface ,Schottky
barrier rather than a point contact. The Schottky doide is formed when a metal ,such as
Aluminium ,is brought into contact with a moderately doped N-type semiconductor. It is a
unipolar device because it has electrons as majority carriers on both sides of the
junction. Hence, there is no depletion layer formed near the junction. It shares the
advantage of point contact diode in that there is no significant current from the metal to
the semiconductor with reverse bias. Thus ,the delay present in the junction diodes due
to hole-electron recombination time is absent here.hence,because of the large contact
area between the metal and semiconductor than in the point contact diode,the forward
resistance is lower and so is noise.

1.2. Structure

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The Schottky barrier diode can be manufactured in a
variety of forms. The most simple is the point contact diode
where a metal wire is pressed against a clean semiconductor
surface. This was how the early Cat's Whisker detectors were
made, and they were found to be very unreliable, requiring
frequent repositioning of the wire to ensure satisfactory
operation. In fact the diode that is formed may either be a
Schottky barrier diode or a standard PN junction dependent
upon the way in which the wire and semiconductor meet and the resulting forming
process.
Although some diodes still use this very simple format, any diode requiring a long
term reliability needs to be fabricated in a more reliable way.

In view of the particular properties of the Schottky diode there are several parameters
that are of key importance when determining the operation of one of these diodes
against the more normal PN junction diodes.

a. Forward voltage drop

In view of the low forward voltage drop across the diode, this is a
parameter that is of particular concern.
b. Reverse breakdown
Schottky diodes do not have a high breakdown voltage. Figures relating to
this include the maximum Peak Reverse Voltage, maximum Blocking DC
Voltage and other similar parameter names. If these figures are exceeded
then there is a possibility the diode will enter reverse breakdown.
c. Capacitance
The capacitance parameter is one of great importance for small signal RF
applications. Normally the junctions areas of Schottky diodes are small and
therefore the capacitance is small.
d. Reverse recovery time
This parameter is important when a diode is used in a switching
application. It is the time taken to switch the diode from its forward conducting
or 'ON' state to the reverse 'OFF' state.
e. Working temperature
The maximum working temperature of the junction, Tj is normally
limited to between 125 to 175C. This is less than that which can be sued
with ordinary silicon diodes.

f. Reverse leakage current.

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The reverse leakage parameter can be an issue with Schottky diodes. It is
found that increasing temperature significantly increases the reverse leakage
current parameter. Typically for every 25C increase in the diode junction
temperature there is an increase in reverse current of an order of magnitude
for the same level of reverse bias.
1.3. Application

The Schottky barrier diodes are widely used in the electronics industry finding many
uses as diode rectifier. Its unique properties enable it to be used in a number of
applications where other diodes would not be able to provide the same level of
performance. In particular it is used in areas including:

a. RF mixer and detector diode: The Schottky diode has come into its own for
radio frequency applications because of its high switching speed and high
frequency capability. In view of this Schottky barrier diodes are used in many high
performance diode ring mixers. In addition to this their low turn on voltage and
high frequency capability and low capacitance make them ideal as RF detectors.

b. Power rectifier: Schottky barrier diodes are also used in high power
applications, as rectifiers. Their high current density and low forward voltage drop
mean that less power is wasted than if ordinary PN junction diodes were used.
This increase in efficiency means that less heat has to be dissipated, and smaller
heat sinks may be able to be incorporated in the design.

c. Power OR circuits: Schottky diodes can be used in applications where a load

is driven by two separate power supplies. One example may be a mains power
supply and a battery supply. In these instances it is necessary that the power
from one supply does not enter the other. This can be achieved using diodes.
However it is important that any voltage drop across the diodes is minimised to
ensure maximum efficiency. As in many other applications, this diode is ideal for
this in view of its low forward voltage drop. Schottky diodes tend to have a high
reverse leakage current. This can lead to problems with any sensing circuits that
may be in use. Leakage paths into high impedance circuits can give rise to false
readings. This must therefore be accommodated in the circuit design.

d. Solar cell applications: Solar cells are typically connected to rechargeable

batteries, often lead acid batteries because power may be required 24 hours a
day and the Sun is not always available. Solar cells do not like the reverse
charge applied and therefore a diode is required in series with the solar cells. Any
voltage drop will result in a reduction in efficiency and therefore a low voltage
drop diode is needed. As in other applications, the low voltage drop of the
Schottky diode is particularly useful, and as a result they are the favoured form of
diode in this application.

e. Clamp diode - especially with its use in LS TTL: Schottky barrier diodes may
also be used as a clamp diode in a transistor circuit to speed the operation when
used as a switch. They were used in this role in the 74LS (low power Schottky)

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and 74S (Schottky) families of logic circuits. In these chips the diodes are
inserted between the collector and base of the driver transistor to act as a clamp.
To produce a low or logic "0" output the transistor is driven hard on, and in this
situation the base collector junction in the diode is forward biased. When the
Schottky diode is present this takes most of the current and allows the turn off
time of the transistor to be greatly reduced, thereby improving the speed of the
circuit.

2. VARACTORS

2.1. Definition
Varactor diode is is a type of diode designed to exploit the voltage-
dependent capacitance of a reversed-biased pn junction. Tuning / varactor
diodes are operated reverse-biased, and therefore no current flows. However,
since the thickness of the depletion zone varies with the applied bias voltage, the
capacitance of the diode can be made to vary. Usually, the capacitance is
inversely proportional to the depletion region thickness and the depletion region
thickness is proportional to the square root of the applied voltage. Therefore, the
capacitance is inversely proportional to the square root of the voltage applied to
the diode.
2.2. Working Process

To understand the working principle of the varactor diode, we must know

what is a capacitor and how can we change the capacitance. Let us consider the
capacitor that consists of two plates separated by an insulating dielectric as
shown in the figure.

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Capacitor

We know that the capacitance of an electrical capacitor is directly

proportional to the area of the plates, as the area of the plates increases the
capacitance of the capacitor increases. Consider the reverse biased mode of the
diode, in which P-type region and N-type region are able to conduct and thus can
be treated as two plates. The depletion region between the P-type and N-type
regions can be considered as insulating dielectric. Thus, it is exactly similar to
the capacitor shown above.
Varactor Diode with P-N Junctoin and Depletion Region

The size of the depletion region of diode changes with change in reverse bias. If
the varactor diode reverse voltage is increased, then the depletion region size increases.
Similarly, if the varactor diode reverse voltage is decreased, then the depletion region
size decreases or narrows.

Variation of Capacitance with Variation in Depletion Region of Varactor Diode

Hence, by varying the reverse bias of the varactor diode the capacitance can be varied.

2.3. Applications

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A few other important applications of varactor diodes can be listed as follows:

a. Varactor diodes can be used as frequency modulators.

b. In microwave receiver LO, varactor diodes can be used as frequency multipliers.

c. Varactor diodes can be used as RF phase shifters.

d. Varactor diodes are used to vary the capacitance in variable resonant tank LC
circuits.

3. PhotoDiodes

3.1. Definition
A photodiode is a semiconductor device that converts light into current.
The current is generated when photons are absorbed in the photodiode. A small
amount of current is also produced when no light is present. Photodiodes may
contain optical filters, built-in lenses, and may have large or small surface areas.
Photodiodes usually have a slower response time as their surface area
increases. The common, traditional solar cell used to generate electric solar
power is a large area photodiode.
3.2. Principal of Operations
Silicon is a semiconductor with a band gap energy of 1.12 eV at room
temperature. This is the gap between the valence band and the conduction band.
At absolute zero temperature the valence band is completely filled and the
conduction band is vacant. As the temperature increases, the electrons become
excited and escalate from the valence band to the conduction band by thermal
energy. The electrons can also be escalated to the conduction band by particles
or photons with energies greater than 1.12eV, which corresponds to wavelengths
shorter than 1100 nm. The resulting electrons in the conduction band are free to
conduct current. Due to concentration gradient, the diffusion of electrons from the
Ntype region to the P-type region and the diffusion of holes from the P-type
region to the N-type region, develops a built-in voltage across the junction. The
inter-diffusion of electrons and holes between the N and P regions across the
junction results in a region with no free carriers. This is the depletion region. The
built-in voltage across the depletion region results in an electric field with
maximum at the junction and no field outside of the depletion region. Any applied
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reverse bias adds to the built in voltage and results in a wider depletion region.
The electron-hole pairs generated by light are swept away by drift in the depletion
region and are collected by diffusion from the undepleted region. The current
generated is proportional to the incident light or radiation power. The light is
absorbed exponentially with distance and is proportional to the absorption
coefficient. The absorption coefficient is very high for shorter wavelengths in the
UV region and is small for longer wavelength. Hence, short wavelength photons
such as UV, are absorbed in a thin top surface layer while silicon becomes
transparent to light wavelengths longer than 1200 nm. Moreover, photons with
energies smaller than the band gap are not absorbed at all.
1 2

3 4

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4. Light Emitting Diodes (LED)

4.1. Definition

Light Emitting Diode (LED) is a two lead semiconductor light source. It is a p-n
junction diode, which emits light when activated. When a suitable voltage is
applied to the leads, electrons are able to recombine with electron holes within
the device, releasing energy in the form of photons. This effect is
called electroluminescence, and the color of the light (corresponding to the
energy of the photon) is determined by the energy band gap of the
semiconductor. The device is capable of emitting a fairly narrow bandwidth of
visible or invisible light when its internal diode junction attains a forward electric
current or voltage. The visible lights that an LED emits are usually orange, red,

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yellow, or green. The invisible light includes the infrared light. The biggest
advantage of this device is its high power to light conversion efficiency. That is,
the efficiency is almost 50 times greater than a simple tungsten lamp. The
response time of the LED is also known to be very fast in the range of 0.1
microseconds when compared with 100 milliseconds for a tungsten lamp. Due to
these advantages, the device wide applications as visual indicators and
as dancing light displays.

4.2. Working Process

LED can produce the light because of collisions between holes and
electrons that produce by electrics current. It can described by following figures.

4.3. Apllication of LED

Today almost everywhere LEDs lights are used and the application of LED is huge.
First we are going to see through the list, then we will categorize the application of these.

In motorcycle and bicycle lights.

In traffic lights and signals.
In message displaying boards.
In light bulbs and many more.

4.4. Advantage
If anybody compares LEDs to other illumination methods present in the market now
days it will be found that LED lighting in by far the most saving solution. In modern era of
technology, there is an up gradation from analog to digital. You can say LED is digital
light which has huge advantages over conventional analog lights. The main advantages
are briefly described below.
1. Size
Light Emitting Diodes are from 3 mm to 8 mm long. The small size allows them to be
used in small spaces where tube lights cannot be used. Because of its small size,
various designs can be made very simply.
2. Larger lifetime
This is the number one benefit of LEDs lights. As an example a high power white LEDs
life time is projected to be 35,000 to 50,000 hours. Where as an incandescent bulbs life
time is 750 to 2,000 hours. For compact fluorescent bulbs, the life time is 8,000 to
10,000 hours. Actually unlike standard lighting LEDs do not burn out. They just
gradually fade.
3. Lower Temperature

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LED's mechanism does not consists of any step to produce heat. In conventional lights,
the production of heat are very common fact. They waste most of their energy as heat.
They remain cool.
4. Energy Efficiency
Light Emitting Diode is todays most energy efficient way of lighting its energy efficiency
is nearly 80% to 90% whereas traditional lights have 20% energy efficiency, 80% is
lost, as heat. More over the quality of lighting is very good.
5. Design Flexibility
LEDs can be merged in any shape or combination. They can be used in singly as an
irony. Single LED can be operated, resulting in a dynamic control of light. Superb
lighting effects of different colors can be achieved by well designed LED illumination
system.
6. Ecologically Friendly
LED lights do not contain any toxic chemical. They do not leave any toxic material and
100% recyclable. Their illuminations are close to no UV emission. The solid package of
it can be designed to focus its light also.
7. Color
LEDs can be emit light of intended color this is done by charging the compositions of
the solid state materials doping without using any color filter.
8. On/Off Time
Light Emitting Diodes can be operated very quickly. They can be used in frequent on/off
operation in communication devices

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