PN JUNCTION DIODE

PN Junction Formation

Depletion Region Formation

Energy Diagram of PN Junction

At the instant of junction formation

Energy Diagram of PN Junction

At Equilibrium

Width of the depletion layer of an open circuited PN junction

Barrier Potential of an open circuited PN junction

Factors deciding the Barrier Potential Value

Type of the semiconductor material Intrinsic concentration of Si or Ge before doping Amount of Doping (on P & N sides) Temperature

Depletion Width Penetration as a function of Doping Concentration

Depletion Width Penetration as a function of Doping Concentration

Depletion Width Penetration as a function of Doping Concentration

PN Junction Diode

Diode under Forward Bias

Diode under Forward Bias

Diode under Reverse Bias

Diode under Reverse Bias

Reverse Current

Reverse Breakdown
It occurs for high reverse bias voltage Impact Ionization Avalanche Effect Reverse Breakdown Voltage

VI Characteristics Curve of a Diode

Resistance Levels
DC or Static Resistance
AC or Dynamic Resistance

VI Characteristics of Si & Ge diodes

Effect of Temperature on VI characteristics of a Diode

Diode Equation

Dynamic Resistance
The derivative of a function at a point is equal to the slope of the tangent line drawn at that point

Dynamic Resistance

Drift Current
It is defined as the flow of electric current due to the motion of the charge carriers under the influence of an external electric field

Equation for Drift Current Density

Diffusion Current
It is defined as the movement of charge carriers taking place from higher concentration region to lower concentration region of the same type of charge carriers under the presence of concentration gradient

Diffusion Current

Equation for Diffusion Current Density

Total Current in a Semiconductor

It is the sum of drift current & diffusion current

Einstein Relationship for Semiconductor

Transition or Depletion Region or Space charge Capacitance (CT)

Depletion width (d) will increase with increased Reverse-bias potential, the resulting transition capacitance CTwill decrease

Diffusion or Storage Capacitance (CD)

CD exists in the forward bias region CD is defined as rate of change of injected charge with applied voltage

Transition & Diffusion Capacitance

Ideal Diode Model

Practical Diode Model

Complete Diode Model

Step Graded Junction

The concentration of NA & ND are constant throughout the p and n sides The doping density changes abruptly from p-type to n-type

Step Graded Junction

Current Components in PN Junction Diode

Current Components in PN Junction Diode (fig 1)

Current Components in PN Junction Diode

Two diffusion currents as a function of distance x from the junction can be defined as

1. Inp(x) = Diffusion current due to electrons

on the P-side as a function of x.

2. Ipn(x) = Diffusion current due to holes on

the N-side as a function of x. Inp(x) & Ipn(x) are two minority currents

Current Components in PN Junction Diode

A. Currents at the junction (x=0)

Diffusion currents due to electrons & holes at the junction (for x=o) will be in the same direction I = the current at the junction, that is, the total current.

I = Inp(0) + Ipn(0)

Current Components in PN Junction Diode

B. But, the total current should remain constant These diffusion currents Inp(x) & Ipn(x) decrease exponentially with increase in x This means that on both sides, there must be some other components of current present which can actually maintain the current I constant

Current Components in PN Junction Diode

C. On P-side

Inp(x) + Ipp(x) = I

Ipp(x) =
holes

majority carrier current due to

Current Components in PN Junction Diode

D. On N-side

Ipn(x) + Inn(x) = I

Inn(x) =
electrons

majority carrier current due to

Current Components in PN Junction Diode

The figure 1 is drawn for an unsymmetrically doped diode so that

Ipn Inp

Application of PN Junction Diode

Rectifier Circuits Clipping circuits Clamping circuits Demodulation circuits Switch in digital logic circuits used in computers

Reference
Electronic devices by Floyd Electronic devices & circuits by Salivahanan Electronic devices & circuits by Millman & Halkias