PHOTOELECTRIC TRANSDUCERS

Lecture 15
Instructor : Dr Alivelu M Parimi
Photoelectric transducers
The basic principle behind the working of the photoelectric
transducers is the Photoelectric effect.
The photoelectric effect refers to the emission or ejection of
electrons from the surface of generally a metal in response to
incident light.
Energy contained within the incident light is absorbed by
electrons within the metal, giving the electrons sufficient
energy to be 'knocked' out of, that is, emitted from the surface
of the metal.
The electrons that are emitted are called 'Photoelectrons'.
The transducers whose working is based on photoelectric
effect are known as Photoelectric Transducers.
These include Photo detectors, Solar cells, Photovoltaic cells,
Photo resistors, Phototransistors and few others.

2
PHOTODETECTORS
Detectors of electromagnetic radiation from ultraviolet to
infrared regions of the light spectrum are called light
detectors. The photodetectors convert incident light energy
into electrical energy. There are two types of light detectors:
Quantum detectors: These detectors rely on the interaction of
individual photons with a crystalline lattice of semiconductor
materials. These devices directly convert photons of
electromagnetic radiation into charge carriers. These operate
from UV to mid IR regions.
Thermal detectors: Thermal photodetectors sense a change in
temperature caused by incident radiation and produce an
output voltage proportional to the temperature change. These
operate from mid IR to far IR regions.

3
Any light source emits light only over a certain range of
frequency or wavelength.
A graph of energy output of source plotted versus frequency
or wavelength is Emission Spectrum of source.
Each photodetector is also most sensitive to particular range
of frequencies/wavelengths.
Graph of device current, voltage or resistance versus radiation
frequency is Spectral Response.

4
Photo Emissive Cell and
Photomultiplier Tube
Photoemissive cell is in which a photosensitive cathode and
anode are placed in an evacuated or inert gas filled quartz or
glass envelope.
Light falling on photosensitive cathode releases electrons
which are collected by positively charged anode to produce
current proportional to the illumination level. Some of the
photocathode types are Ag-O-Cs, Bi-Ag-O-Cs, Cs
3
-Sb-O, Na
2
-K-
Sb-Cs and K
2
-Cs-Sb
5
photomultiplier
Photodiodes
A photodiode is an electronic component and a type of
photodetector.
It is a p-n junction designed to be responsive to optical input.
Photodiodes can be used in either zero bias or reverse bias.
In zero bias, light falling on the diode causes a voltage to develop
across the device, leading to a current in the forward bias direction.
This is called the Photovoltaic effect and is the basis for solar cells.
Diodes usually have extremely high resistance when reverse biased.
This resistance is reduced when light of an appropriate frequency
strikes the junction. Hence, a reverse biased diode can be used as a
detector by monitoring the current running through it.
6
Photodiodes
The photodiode is usually operated in reverse bias mode, so that the
carriers generated within the depletion region are quickly swept
toward the terminals.
This is one reason why the response speed of a photodiode is fast.
A photodiode is operated in the third quadrant of the I-V curve.
In a reverse biased p-n junction a reverse saturation current flows
due to minority carriers which are thermally generated.
Increasing the reverse bias does not increase the reverse current
significantly, while increasing the temperature increases minority
carrier (reverse) current.
Same effect occurs due to incident light.
Increasing the illumination increases number of minority carriers
and hence the reverse current.
This current known as the photocurrent is proportional to the
intensity of the incident light.
Such a diode is called a photodiode.
7
Photodiodes
For a photodiode, bias voltage and amplification both are required.
Response time of photodiodes is fast, of the order of nanoseconds.
Photodiodes are usually fabricated using a compound
semiconductor such as Gallium Arsenide.
Photodiodes are packaged with either a window or optical fibre
connection, in order to let in the light to the sensitive part of the
device.
They may also be used without a window to detect UV or X-rays.
The material used to make a photodiode is critical to defining its
properties, because only photons with sufficient energy to excite
electrons across the material's bandgap will produce significant
photocurrents.
Materials commonly used to produce photodiodes are Silicon,
Gernmanium, Indium Galleium Arsenide and Lead Sulphide.
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Photodiodes
Photodiodes have a linear response and are often used for
accurate measurement of light intensity in science and
industry applications. Figure shows photodiode circuit and its
V-I characteristics. Dark current is defined as the current that
flows through the photodiode which is caused by leakage in
reverse biased photodiode in the absence of light.

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Problem
10
In absence of light, current is 25A and reverse bias voltage is 3V. Upon illumination of 25,000
lm/m
2
, current becomes 375 A. Calculate the change in resistance.
Solution
O = = k 120 A
25
3
R
dark

Upon an illumination of 25000 lm/m
2
,
A Current 375 =

O == = k
A
V
ce resis ated Illu 8
375
3
tan min

Thus the resistance has decreased and change in resistance is 120 8 = 112 KO and can be
employed as photoconductive device.
Phototransistor
A phototransistor is similar to an ordinary bipolar transistor,
except that they are specially designed with the base region
exposed.
They have only two leads (collector and emitter), instead of
base current, input to transistor is in form of light.
When there is no light the phototransistor is closed and does
not allow a collector-emitter current to go through.
The phototransistor operates only with the presence of
sufficient light.
When light impinges upon its reverse biased collector-base
junction, collector current increases.
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Phototransistor
It is typically more sensitive than the photodiode. Current is
amplified by (I
c
/I
b
), where I
c
is the collector

current and I
b
is
the base current.
Dark current is also amplified.
They have slower response compared to photodiodes.
Response time of phototransistor is of the order of
microseconds compared to nanoseconds of photodiodes.
Figure shows symbol of phototransistor and the two
configurations , with base and without base.
The base region is enlarged and generally does not have a lead
attached to it.
Three pin configuration can be used as ordinary transistor
also. In two lead configuration, base is not electrically
connected, and device can be used with only light as input.

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Problem
A phototransistor having the output characteristics shown in
Figure is connected in a circuit having supply voltage of 20V
and a collector load resistance of 2 kO. Draw the circuit, load
Line and determine the output voltage when the illumination
level is:
i) Zero
ii) 200 W/m
2

iii) 400 W/m
2


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Photoconductive Devices (or
Photo Resistors)
Photoconductive detectors are based on the effects of change in the
semiconductor's resistance when the material is exposed to light.
Almost all semiconductors decrease in resistance with the increase
of incident illumination.
The basic photoconductive cell contains a semiconducting material
between two conducting electrodes, which are used to connect the
leads.
These devices consist of a thin single crystal or polycrystalline film of
compound semi conductor.
The most common materials used for the cells are Cadmium
Sulphide (CdS) lead sulfide (PbS) and Lead Selenide (PbSe)
polycrystalline films and also doped Germanium and Silicon bulk
single-crystals.
CdS cells are sensitive to light in visible spectrum, they are also
referred as LDR (Light Dependent Resistor).

15
Photoconductive Devices (or
Photo Resistors)
Semiconductor light detectors can be divided into two major categories:
junction and bulk effect devices.
Junction devices, when operated in the photoconductive mode, utilize
the reverse characteristic of a PN junction.
Under reverse bias, the PN junction acts as a light controlled current source.
Output is proportional to incident illumination and is relatively independent
of applied voltage .
Silicon photodiodes are examples of this type detector.
In contrast, bulk effect photoconductors have no junction.
The bulk resistivity decreases with increasing illumination, allowing
more photocurrent to flow.
This resistive characteristic gives bulk effect photoconductors a unique
quality: signal current from the detector can be varied over a wide range by
adjusting the applied voltage.
Bulk effect photoconductors are referred as photoconductive cells or simply
photocells.
Photocells are thin film devices made by depositing a layer of a
photoconductive material on ceramic substrate

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Photo resistors
Photo resistors are specially designed to have a large dark to light
resistance variation.
In the dark, the resistance is very high, in the 1 mega ohm range.
When illuminated, the resistance may drop to a few hundred ohms.
They are typically more sensitive to green light, and they have a very
high sensitivity compared to other types of sensors.
They cannot be practically used for high speed switching or
modulation for communications purposes because there is a
"memory effect", requiring on the order of a second for the
resistance to rise to its dark resistance.
Photoconductors exhibit slow response.
There is a time lag between change in illumination and change in
resistance.

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Problem
The relay of circuit shown in Figure (a) is to be controlled by a
photoconductive cell. The resistance vs illumination
characteristics are (log-log) shown in Figure (b). The relay is to
be energized when potentiometer delivers 10mA upon cell
illumination of about 400 lm/m
2
and is required to be de-
energized when the cell is dark. Calculate (i) The required
series resistance (ii) The level of the dark current.

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Solution
19
Solution
(i)
The cell resistance at 400 lm/m
2
= 1kO
I =
cell 1
R R
V 30
+

R
1
=

O = O k 2 k 1
mA 10
V 30


(ii)
The cell dark resistance = 100 kO
Dark current =
mA 3 . 0
k 100 k 2
V 30
=
O + O

Relay is energized when current rises to 10mA and gets deenergised when current drops to 0.3
mA.
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Whats Photoelectric Effect?
-is the emission of electrons from matter upon the
absorption of electromagnetic radiation, such as
ultraviolet radiation or x-rays.-refers to the emission,
or ejection, of electrons from the surface of,
generally, a metal in response to incident light.

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Photoelectric Transducer
Can be categorized as: photoemissive, photoconductive, or photovoltaic.

No. Types Characteristics
1. Photoemmisive radiation falling into a cathode causes
electrons to be emitted from cathode
surface.
2. Photoconductive the resistance of a material is change
when its illuminated.
3. Photovoltaic
Generate an output voltage
proportional to radiation intensity
Types
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Photo Emissive
Photo Conductive
Photo Voltaic
Photovoltaic Cells
Photovoltaic cells form an important class of photodetectors. Photovoltaic cells
are devices that convert sunlight to electricity.
They are called photovoltaic cells because of their voltage generating
characteristics.
The tremendous advantages of the photovoltaic cell, as its name implies, is its
ability to generate a voltage without any form of bias and its extremely fast
response.
This means that they are active transducers, are used as an energy converter
directly.
Photovoltaic is the direct conversion of light into electricity at the atomic level.
Photovoltaic cells generate a voltage which is proportional to EM radiation
intensity.
When light strikes space-charge region, electron-holes are generated.
They are quickly swept out of space-charge region by the electric field, creating
photocurrent.
The generated photocurrent would produce a voltage across the load, which
means solar cell has supplied power.
Solar cells usually fabricated from Silicon, GaAs, III-V compound semiconductors

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Photovoltaic
The photovoltaic cells were developed at Bell Labs in 1950,
initially for space applications.
The Hubble telescope utilizes solar panels for its energy
requirements.
Other than space satellites, the photovoltaic cells are being
used in rural health clinics for refrigeration, water pumps for
irrigation and for small scale power generation.
One use of this is in photographic exposure meters which
require no battery.
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Photovoltaic Cells
25
Photovoltaic Cells
There are 2 major types of photovoltaic cells.
1. Crystalline materials
Monocrystalline silicon cells
Most expensive to make because they require very pure silicon and involve a complicated
crystal growth process. They also have the highest energy efficiency of around 16%.
Polycrystalline silicon cells
Less expensive because the cells are not grown in single crystals but in a large block that is
then sawn into cells. Their energy efficiency is around 15%.
GaAs cells
Structure similar to that of Silicon, but they have high level of light absorptivity. They also
have high energy conversion efficiency between 25% to 30%.
2. Thin film materials
Amorphous cells
They are not crystals, but a thin layer of silicon vapourised on base such as glass. They are
relatively cheap, but their energy efficiency is only around 8%.
Cadmium Telluride (CdTe)
A polycrystalline semiconductor made of Cadmium and Tellurium have a high absorptivity
level. The conversion efficiency is about 7%. But it has many disadvantages like being toxic,
instability of cell.
Copper Indium Diselenide (CuInSe
2
)
An efficient but complex material, difficult to manufacture. The conversion efficiency has
reached 18% after repeated research works.

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Photovoltaic
One single photovoltaic (PV) cell produces up to 2 watts of power.
To increase power output, many PV cells are connected together to
form modules, which are further assembled into larger units called
arrays.
This modular nature of PV enables designers to build PV systems
with various power output for different types of applications.
A number of solar cells electrically connected to each other and
mounted in a support structure or frame is called a photovoltaic
module.
The current produced is directly dependent on how much light
strikes the module.
Multiple modules can be wired together to form an array.
Photovoltaic modules and arrays produce direct-current (dc)
electricity.
They can be connected in both series and parallel electrical
arrangements to produce any required voltage and current
combination.
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28
Level of input light is expressed in terms of SUN. Sun is emitting 1.7 X 10
23
kW of power. Out
of that kW 10 5 . 8
13
reaches the earth. Out of which kW 10 6
13
penetrates earths atmosphere.
With sun directly overhead on a clear day, power density of sunlight is 100 mW/cm
2
. This value
of power density is called 1 SUN.
Thus,
- 1 SUN = 1
2 2 2 2
cm
mW 100
cm
W 1 . 0
m
W 1000
m
kW 1
= = =

On a cloudy day, power density of sunlight might be 0.3 SUN or 30 mW/cm
2
.
Energy Density is defined as the product of power density and time.
Time Density Power Density Energy =

It is measured in units of Langley where 1 Langley is 11.62 W-Hr/m
2
.
A parameter known as fill factor (FF) measures the "squareness" of the I-V curve and describes
the degree to which the voltage at the maximum power point (V
max
) matches V
oc
and that the
current at the maximum power point (I
max
) matches I
sc
. The higher the fill factor , the "squarer"
is the curve.
sc sc
max max
V I
V I
FF =
Problem
If the strength of sunlight is 1SUN for a period of one minute,
find the energy density in Langley.

29
Solution
1SUN = 1000 W/m
2

Energy Density =
hr
min
60
min 1
m
W
1000
2

= 16.67 W-hr/m
2
= Langley
62 . 11
67 . 16
= 1.434 Langley
Problem
30
An earth satellite has 12V battery which supplies a continuous current of 0.5 A. Solar cells are
employed to keep batteries charged. If illumination of sun for 12 hours in every 24 hours is 125
mW/cm
2
. Determine approximate number of cells required for maximum output power. Each
device must operate at 0.45 V and 57 mA. Allow for a voltage drop of maximum 1V.
Solution
Assuming maximum drop of 1 V. we will design for 13V i.e.12V+1V
Number of cells in one branch = 29 88 . 28
45 . 0
13
~ =
Charge taken from batteries over 24 hrs = A 5 . 0 hr 24 = 12A-hr

Delivery of current for 12 hrs = 1A

Number of parallel branches = 18 544 . 17
mA 57
A 1
~ =
Thus the total number of cells = 522 29 18 =
Problem
31
Consider a solar cell driving a load of 3O. This cell has an area of 3cm 3cm and is illuminated
with light of intensity 700 Wm
2
.Voltage and current for maximum power point with load of
3Oare 0.475 V and 157 mA respectively. Find (i) Power delivered to the load, (ii) Efficiency of
the solar cell in this circuit, and (iii) Fill factor of the solar cell. Given : I
sc
= 178 mA, V
oc
=
0.58 V.
Solution
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Solution
(i) The power delivered to the load is
P
out
= I*V = (15710
3
)(0.475 V) = 0.0746 W or 74.6 mW
The input power of sunlight is
P
in
= (Light intensity) (Surface area) = (700 W m
2
) (0.03m)
2
= 0.63 W
(ii) The efficiency is q
photovoltaic
= (100%) % 8 . 11
W 63 . 0
W 0746 . 0
% 100
P
P
in
out
= =
% 72 or 722 . 0
) V 58 . 0 )( mA 178 (
) V 475 . 0 )( mA 157 (
V I
V I
FF
oc sc
max max
= = ~
Application
33

Photoelectric sensors are readily present in
everyday life.

They help safely control the opening and
closing of garage doors, turn on sink faucets
with the wave of a hand, control elevators,
open the doors at the grocery store, detect the
winning car at racing events, and so much
more.