Electrical Properties II

Question

“How can we modify electrical conductivity in

semi-conductors?

2
 Learning objectives
• Explain electrical conductivity of conductors,
insulators and semi-conductors using band
gaps
• Explain electrical conductivity in intrinsic and
extrinsic semi-conductors using free electrons
and holes
• Perform simple calculations of conductivity in
semi-conductors

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Electrical Insulators

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Energy Band Structures: Insulators vs. conductors

Schematics (a) and (b) for metals, (c) for insulator.

 Understanding Insulators low electrical conductivity

• The energy required to excite an electron

into the conduction band is high and
approximately equal to the band gap
energy, Eg (several eV)
• Generally, voltages required are very large
and thermal excitation is also necessary.
• Alternatively, viewing from the perspective
of bonding theory, the bonding in these
materials is predominantly ionic (some
covalent), the valence atoms are tightly
bound to or shared with adjacent atoms

• (Insulators):
- low density of available charge carriers (most important)
- sometimes, also low mobility

Therefore, low conductivity

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Semiconductors

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Energy Band Structures: Conductors vs.
Insulators vs. Semi-Conductors

Schematics (a) and (b) for metals, (c) for insulator, (d) semi-conductor.
Band diagrams for insulators and semiconductors

Insulators semiconductors
have large have small band
band gaps gaps
e.g. diamond, e.g. Si, 1.1 eV,
5.5 eV GaAs, 1.4 ev
Understanding semi-conductors intermediate electrical
conductivity

• The energy required to excite an electron

into the conduction band is lower in semi-
conductors because Eg is smaller.
• The voltages required are lower, holes can
also play a role.
• Covalent bonds dominate, which are
weaker.

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Why semiconductor materials?

• Semi-conductors belong to a class of materials that

have unique electrical characteristics making them
useful for a number of commercial applications.

• Examples include: MOSFET (metal oxide

semiconductor field effect transistor), Light Emitting
Diodes (LED), lasers, solar cells, photo-detectors
(CCD digital camera)

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 Commercial consumer products based on semi-
conductor technology

Integrated Circuit - A CCD chip from

Light emitting diodes
digital camera -made
MOSFET (LED) from Si
Red: AlGaAs, GaAsP etc.
Green: InGaN, GaP
Blue: ZnSe, InGaN
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 Major semiconductor materials

• There are two types of semi-conductors:

1. Intrinsic - electrical conductivity based on the electronic structure
present in the pure material
2. Extrinsic - electrical conductivity based on additional elements
added to the base semiconductor (dopant or “impurity atoms”). s
can be extremely sensitive to even tiny amounts of the dopant.
• Dominant material is Si
• Si-based devices occupy 93% of semiconductor market in 2004

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Insulators, Semiconductors, Conductors

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 Semi-Conductors
• Key point – we can “engineer” the conductive
properties of extrinsic semi-conductors.

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Bonding in Si

Silicon
atoms
 Electron behaviour in pure Si (intrinsic semi-
conductor) at low temperature

• At low-temperatures there are no free electrons or holes

– insufficient thermal excitation of electrons into the
conduction band.
• Very low electrical conductivity
 Electron behaviour in pure Si (intrinsic semi-
conductor) at elevated temperature

In semiconductors (i.e. small band gap materials), thermal energy

in the crystal can excite electrons from the valence band to the
conduction band
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Charge Carriers in Semiconductors

Two types of electronic charge

carriers:
Free Electron in conduction band
– negative charge becomes
mobile

Hole created in valence band

– positive charge becomes
mobile

Free electrons and holes have different mobilities

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Charge carrier behaviour in pure Si (intrinsic semi-conductor)
at elevated temperature subject to and electric field

• Electrical Conductivity given by:

# holes/m3
s  n e e  p e h
hole mobility
# electrons/m3 electron mobility
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Charge carrier behaviour in pure Si (intrinsic semi-conductor)
at elevated temperature subject to and electric field

• Electrical Conductivity given by:

# holes/m3
s  n e e  p e h
hole mobility
# electrons/m3 electron mobility

Silicon
e; Electron mobility = 0.14 m2/V/s
h; Hole mobility = 0.05 m2/V/s (note: previously m2/Vs)
n; Number of Charge Carries = ~1016 /m3
e; Charge on an Electron = 1.6x10-19C

where: V is volts, C Coloumbs

s = m-3 × C × m2V-1s-1= W-1m-1

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 Intrinsic Semiconductors: Conductivity vs T
• Data for Pure Silicon:
- s increases with T (opposite to metals)
s  ni e e  h 

E gap / kT
ni  e


material band gap (eV)

Si 1.11
 Ge
GaP
0.67
2.25
CdS 2.40
Selected values from Table 18.3,
Callister & Rethwisch 8e.

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Intrinsic Semiconductors
• Pure material semiconductors: e.g., silicon &
germanium
– Group IVA materials
• Compound semiconductors
– III-V compounds
• Ex: GaAs & InSb
– II-VI compounds
• Ex: CdS & ZnTe
– The wider the electronegativity difference between
the elements the wider the energy gap.

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Number of charge carriers in Intrinsic semi-
conductor
Intrinsic Conductivity
s = n e me + p e mh

• for intrinsic semiconductor n = p = ni

 s = n e (me + mh )
• Ex: GaAs
s 3 x10 7 (W  m) 1
ni  
e  e   h  (1.6 x10 19 C)(0.80  0.04 m 2 /V  s)

For GaAs ni = 2.2 x 1012 m-3

For Si ni = 1.1 x 1016 m-3
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 Extrinsic semi-conductors
• Intrinsic:
- # electrons = # holes (n = p)

• Extrinsic:
- electrical behavior is determined by presence of “impurities”
that introduce excess electrons or holes
-n≠p
• n-type Extrinsic: (n >> p) • p-type Extrinsic: (p >> n)

s  n e e s  p e h

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 Conduction in n-type Si

Excitation of donor electron to

conduction band is easy!

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 Conduction in p-type Si

Excitation of valence electron to

acceptor state is easy and leaves a
hole that can move

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Comparison of mobility in p-type Si
 Extrinsic Semiconductors: Conductivity vs. Temperature

• Comparison: intrinsic vs
extrinsic conduction...
- extrinsic doping level:
1021/m3 of a n-type donor
impurity (such as P).
- for T < 100 K: "freeze-out“,
thermal energy insufficient to
excite electrons.
- for 150 K < T < 450 K: "extrinsic"
- for T >> 450 K: "intrinsic"

Pure Si
Si doped with P 30
 Question

“How can we modify electrical conductivity in

semi-conductors?

31
 Learning objectives
• Explain electrical conductivity of conductors,
insulators and semi-conductors using band
gaps
• Explain electrical conductivity in intrinsic and
extrinsic semi-conductors using free electrons
and holes
• Perform simple calculations of conductivity in
semi-conductors

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 Homework Problems
• Callister
– L3,L4: 18.1, 18.3, 18.21, 18.25, 18.28,
18.1FE, 18.2FE, 18.4.FE, 18.5FE

APSC278 by Warren Poole and

Anoush Poursartip
 Example problem
• 18.28 Predict whether each of the following elements
will act as a donor or an acceptor when added to the
indicated semiconducting material. Assume that the
impurity elements are substitutional.

Impurity Semiconductor

N Si

B Ge

S InSb

In CdS

As ZnTe
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