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1.1 SEMICONDUCTOR MATERIALS

• Insulators (e.g. fused quartz and

glass) have very low conductivities, on
the order of 10 − 10 S/cm;
• Conductors such as aluminum and

Chapter I. Energy Bands and Carrier silver have high conductivities, typically
from 10 to 10 S/ 𝑐𝑚 .

Concentration in Thermal Equilibrium • Semiconductors have conductivities

between those of insulators and
conductors.
• The conductivity of a semiconductor
is generally sensitive to temperature,

Lecturer: VU XUAN HIEN Fig. 1 Typical range of conductivities for insulators, semiconductors,
illumination, magnetic field, and
minute amounts of impurity atoms
and conductors. insulators and those of conductors. (typically, about 1𝜇 g to 1 g of impurity
atoms in 1 kg of semiconductor
materials).
1 2

1.1.1 Element Semiconductors 1.1.2 Compound Semiconductors

In the early 1950s, germanium was the Column General Semiconductor II-VI ----- ZnO Zinc oxide

major semiconductor material. Period III IV V VI Classification

Symbol Name ZnS Zinc sulfide
II
Element Si Silicon ZnSe Zinc selenide
Since the early 1960s silicon has 2 B C N O ZnTe Zinc telluride
Ge Germanium
become a practical substitute and has Boron Carbon Nitrogen Oxygen Binary compound CdS Cadmium sulfide
now virtually supplanted germanium as 3 Mg Al Si P S IV-IV ------------------- CdSe Cadmium selenide
SiC Silicon carbide
a semiconductor material. ---------- CdTe Cadmium telluride
Magnesi Aluminu Phosphor
Silicon Sulfur III-V -------------------- AlP Aluminum phosphide HgS Mercury sulfide
Main reasons are that silicon devices um m us --------- IV-VI ------------ PbS Lead sulfide
AlAs Aluminum arsenide
exhibit better properties at room 4 Zn Ga Ge As Se -----------------
PbSe Lead selenide
AlSb Aluminum antimonide
temperature, and high-quality silicon PbTe Lead telluride
Germani GaN Gallium nitride
dioxide can be grown thermally. There Zinc Gallium
um
Arsenic Selenium
GaP Gallium phosphide Ternary Aluminum gallium arsenide
are also economic considerations. GaAs Gallium arsenide
compound Al In As Aluminum indium arsenide
5 Cd In Sn Sb Te
GaAs P Gallium arsenic phosphide
Silicon in the form of silica and silicates Cadmium Indium Tin Antimony Tellurium
GaSb Gallium antimonide
GaIn N Gallium indium nitride
comprises 25% of the Earth's crust, and InP Indium phosphide
Hg Pb Ga In As Gallium indium arsenide
silicon is second only to oxygen in InAs Indium arsenide
Ga In P Gallium indium phosphide
abundance. Mercury Lead InSb Indium antimonide
Quaternary Al Ga As Sb Aluminum gallium arsenic antimonide
compound Ga In As P Gallium indium arsenic phosphide

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1.2 BASIC CRYSTAL STRUCTURES 1.2 BASIC CRYSTAL STRUCTURES

1.2.1 Unit Cell 1.2.1 Unit Cell

EXAMPLE:

If we pack hard spheres in a bcc lattice so that the atom in the center
just touches the atoms at the corners of the cube, find the fraction of the
bcc unit cell volume filled with hard spheres?

Fig. 2 A generalized primitive unit cell. Fig. 3 Three cubic-crystal unit cells; (a) Simple cubic; (b) Body-centered cubic; (c) Face-centered cubic. Nếu chúng ta xếp các quả cầu cứng trong mạng tinh thể lập phương tâm
Every equivalent lattice point in the three-dimensional crystal can be found using khối (BCC) sao cho nguyên tử ở tâm vừa chạm vào các nguyên tử ở các
the set đỉnh của hình lập phương, hãy tìm phần thể tích của ô cơ sở BCC được
𝑹 = 𝑚𝒂 + 𝑛𝒃 + 𝑝𝒄
lấp đầy bởi các quả cầu cứng?
where 𝑚, 𝑛, and 𝑝 are integers.

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1.2 BASIC CRYSTAL STRUCTURES 1.2 BASIC CRYSTAL STRUCTURES

1.2.1 Unit Cell 1.2.2 The Diamond Structure
SOLUTION Silicon and germanium, have the diamond lattice structure shown in Fig. 4a. This structure also
belongs to the fcc crystal family and can be seen as two interpenetrating fcc sublattices with
Each corner sphere in a bcc unit cell is shared with eight neighboring cells; thus, each unit one sublattice displaced from the other by one-quarter of the distance along the body diagonal of the
cell contains one-eighth of a sphere at each of the eight corners for a total of one sphere. In cube (i.e., a displacement of 𝒂 𝟑/𝟒).
addition, each unit cell contains one central sphere. We have the following:
• Spheres (atoms) per unit cell = (1/8) × 8 (corner) +1 (center) = 2;
• Nearest-neighbor distance (along the diagonal AE in Fig. 3b) = 𝑎 3/2;
• Radius of each sphere = 𝑎 3/4;
• Volume of each sphere = 4𝜋/3 × (𝑎 3/4) = 𝜋𝑎 3/16;
• Maximum fraction of unit cell filled = Number of spheres × volume of each sphere/total
volume of each unit cell = 2 𝜋𝑎 3/16 /𝑎 = 𝜋 3/8 ≈ 0.68.
Therefore, about 68% of the bcc unit cell volume is filled with hard spheres, and about 32%
of the volume is empty.
Fig. 4 (a) Diamond lattice. (b) Zincblende lattice.
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1.2 BASIC CRYSTAL STRUCTURES 1.2 BASIC CRYSTAL STRUCTURES

1.2.2 The Diamond Structure 1.2.2 The Diamond Structure

EXAMPLE:
SOLUTION

At 300 K the lattice constant for silicon is 5.43"Å" . Calculate the • There are eight atoms per unit cell. Therefore,
number of silicon atoms per cubic centimeter and the density of silicon 8/𝑎 = 8/ 5.43 × 10 = 5 × 10 atoms /cm ;
at room temperature?
• Density = = no. of atoms /cm × atomic weight / Avogadro's

Ở nhiệt độ 300 K, hằng số mạng của silicon là 5.43 Å. Hãy tính số

number = 5 × 10 atoms /cm ) × 28.09( g/mol)/6.02 × 10 (
atoms /mol) = 2.33 g/cm .
nguyên tử silicon trên mỗi centimet khối và khối lượng riêng của silicon
ở nhiệt độ phòng?

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1.2 BASIC CRYSTAL STRUCTURES 1.2 BASIC CRYSTAL STRUCTURES

1.2.3 Crystal Planes and Miller Indices 1.2.3 Crystal Planes and Miller Indices
As shown in Fig. 5, the plane has 1. (ℎ‾𝑘𝑙) : For a plane that intercepts the 𝑥-axis on the negative side of the origin, such as (100).
2. {ℎ𝑘𝑙} : For planes of equivalent symmetry, such as {100} for (100), (010), (001), (100), (010), and (001) in cubic symmetry.
intercepts at 𝑎, 3𝑎, and 2𝑎 along the 3. [ℎ𝑘𝑙] : For a crystal direction, such as [100] for the 𝑥-axis. By definition, the [100]-direction is perpendicular to (100)-
three coordinates. plane, and the [111]-direction is perpendicular to the (111)-plane.

• Taking the reciprocals of these 4. ⟨ℎ𝑘𝑙⟩ : For a full set of equivalent directions, such as ⟨100⟩ for [100], [010], [001], [100], [010], and [001].

intercepts, we get 1,1/3, and 1/2.

• The smallest three integers having
the same ratio are 6,2 , and 3
(obtained by multiplying each
fraction by 6 ).
Fig. 5 A (623)-crystal plane.
• Thus, the plane is referred to as a
(623)-plane.
Fig. 6 Miller indices of some important planes in a cubic crystal.
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1.3 VALENCE BONDS 1.3 VALENCE BONDS

Each Si atom has four electrons in the outer orbit, and each atom shares these Deficiency may be filled by one of the neighboring electrons, which
valence electrons with its four neighbors. This sharing of electrons is known as
results in a shift of the deficiency location, as from location 𝐴 to location
covalent bonding; each electron pair constitutes a covalent bond.
𝐵. We can consider this deficiency as a particle similar to an electron.
Covalent bonding occurs between
atoms of the same element or This fictitious particle is
between atoms of different called a hole. It carries
elements that have similar outer- a positive charge and
shell electron configurations.
moves, under the
Each electron spends an equal
amount of time with each nucleus. influence of an applied
electric field, in the
GaAs crystallizes in a
zincblende lattice, which also has
direction opposite to
Fig. 7 (a) A tetrahedron bond.
(b) Schematic two-dimensional representation of a tetrahedron bond. tetrahedron bonds. that of an electron.
Fig. 8 The basic bond representation of intrinsic silicon. (a) A broken bond at position A,
resulting in a conduction electron and a hole. (b) A broken bond at position B.

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1.4 ENERGY BANDS 1.4 ENERGY BANDS

1.4.1 Energy Levels of Isolated Atoms We only need to consider the outer shell since the
two inner shells are completely full and tightly bound
Bohr model: 𝐸 = −𝑚 𝑞 /8𝜀 ℎ 𝑛 = −13.6/𝑛 eV 𝑬𝒈 = 𝑬𝑪 − 𝑬 𝑽 to the nucleus.
As the 3s and 3p bands grow (decrease interatomic
spacing), they merge into a single band containing
8𝑁 states.
At the equilibrium interatomic distance determined
by the condition of minimum total energy, the bands
will again split, with 4N states in the lower band and
4N states in the upper band.
Fig. 9 The splitting of a degenerate state into a band of allowed energies. Fig. 10 Schematic representation of an isolated silicon atom. At a temperature of absolute zero, electrons occupy
Pauli exclusion principle, which states that no more than two electrons in a given system the lowest energy states, so that all states in the lower
can reside in the same energy state at the same time. Fig. 11 Formation of energy bands as a diamond lattice crystal is band (the valence band) will be full and all states in
The parameter 𝒂 represents the equilibrium inter-atomic distance of the crystal. formed by bringing isolated silicon atoms together.
the upper band (the conduction band) will be
empty.
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1.4 ENERGY BANDS 1.4 ENERGY BANDS

1.4.2 The Energy-Momentum Diagram
𝑝 • Electron effective mass of 𝒎𝒏 =
The energy 𝐸 of a free electron is given by 𝐸=
2𝑚 𝟎. 𝟐𝟓𝒎𝟎 in the conduction band (the
where 𝑝 is the momentum and 𝑚 is the free-electron mass. If upper parabola) and a hole effective
we plot 𝐸 vs. 𝑝, we obtain a parabola as shown in Fig. 12. mass of 𝒎𝒑 = 𝒎𝟎 in the valence band
Replaces the free-electron mass by an effective mass 𝑚 (the
subscript 𝑛 refers to the negative charge on an electron):
(the lower parabola).
𝑝 • Electron energy is measured upward
𝐸= and the hole energy is measured
2𝑚
Therefore, we can obtain the effective mass from the second downward.
derivative of 𝐸 with respect to 𝑝:
𝑑 𝐸 • The spacing at 𝑝 = 0 between these two
Fig. 12 The parabolic energy ( 𝐸 ) vs. momentum ( 𝑝 )
𝑚 ≡
curve for a free electron.
𝑑𝑝 parabolas is the bandgap 𝑬𝒈
Therefore, the narrower the parabola, corresponding to a Fig. 13 A schematic energy-momentum diagram for a
larger second derivative, the smaller the effective mass. special semiconductor with 𝑚 = 0.25𝑚 and 𝑚 = 𝑚 .

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1.4 ENERGY BANDS 1.4 ENERGY BANDS

If the minimum of the conduction

band occurs at 𝒑 = 𝟎, the effective • GaAs has a very narrow conduction band (CB) parabola, and using
mass of the electrons in every direction the effective mass formula, we can predict that the electron
in the crystal is the same. Also, the
electron motion is independent of crystal effective mass is small (𝑚 = 0,063𝑚 ).
direction.
• For Si, the CB parabola is broader, resulting in a larger effective
If the minimum of the conduction
band occurs at 𝒑 ≠ 𝟎, the electron mass (𝑚 = 0,19𝑚 ).
behavior in every direction is not the
same in the crystal. • The difference between direct and indirect bandgap structures is
In general, the minimum of conduction crucial for applications in LED and semiconductor laser
band of polar (with partly ionic fabrication.
Fig. 14 Energy band structures of (a) Si and (b) GaAs. Circles (o) indicate holes in
the valence bands and dots ( ) indicate electrons in the conduction bands.
binding) semiconductors tend to be at
𝑝 = 0.
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1.4 ENERGY BANDS 1.4 ENERGY BANDS

Si and Ge are group 4 elements – each Si (Ge) atom has 4 valence electrons in the crystal lattice. 1.4.3 Conduction in Metals, Semiconductors, and Insulators
The characteristics of a metal (also called a
conductor) include a very low value of
resistivity and a conduction band that either
is partially filled ( as in Cu ) or overlaps the
Fig. 14c Schematic of valence band (as in Zn or Pb ) so that there
electrons and holes in basic
bond representation of is no bandgap.
intrinsic silicon.
In an insulator such as SiO2, the valence
electrons form strong bonds between
neighboring atoms (difficult to break).
Fig. 15 Schematic energy band representations of (a) a conductor with two There are no free electrons at or near room
possibilities (either the partially filled conduction band shown at the upper
At T = 0 K, all For T > 0 K, thermal fluctuations can break portion or the overlapping bands shown at the lower portion), (b) a temperature. Insulators are characterized by
electrons are bound in electrons free from their bonds, creating semiconductor, and (c) an insulator. a large bandgap.
covalent bonds → no electron-hole pairs. Both electrons and Now, material that has a energy gap, on the order of 1 eV (Fig. 15b) are called semiconductors. At
charge carriers. holes can move within the crystal, leading to 𝑇 = 0 K, all electrons are in the valence band, and there are no electrons in the conduction band.
electrical conductivity. 𝑬𝒈 are 1.12 eV for Si and 1.42 eV for GaAs
21 22

1.5 INTRINSIC CARRIER CONCENTRATION 1.5 INTRINSIC CARRIER CONCENTRATION

Electron density in the conduction band is given by For energies that are 𝟑𝒌𝑻 above or below the Fermi energy, the
integrating 𝑁(𝐸)𝐹(𝐸)𝑑𝐸 from the bottom of the / ) becomes larger than 20 or smaller
conduction band (𝐸 initially taken to be 𝐸 = 0 for exponential term (𝑒
simplicity) to the top of the conduction band 𝐸top : than 0.05 , respectively.
𝑛= 𝑛 𝐸 d𝐸 = 𝑁(𝐸)𝐹(𝐸)d𝐸 The Fermi distribution function can thus be approximated by simpler
where 𝑛 is in cm , and 𝑁(𝐸) is density of states in
expressions:
cm eV . 𝑬 𝑬𝑭 /𝒌𝑻
The probability that an electron occupies an electronic 𝑭(𝑬) ≅ 𝒆 for 𝐸 − 𝐸 > 3𝑘𝑇
state with energy 𝐸 is given by the Fermi-Dirac
distribution function or Fermi distribution function
and
Fig. 16 Fermi distribution function 𝐹(𝐸) versus 𝐸 − 𝐸
for various temperatures. 1 𝑭 𝑬 ≅𝟏 −𝒆 𝑬 𝑬𝑭 /𝒌𝑻 for 𝐸 − 𝐸 < 3𝑘𝑇
𝐹 𝐸 = /
1+e
where 𝑘 is the Boltzmann constant, 𝑇 is the absolute temperature in degrees Kelvin,
and 𝐸 is the energy of the Fermi level.
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1.5 INTRINSIC CARRIER CONCENTRATION 1.5 INTRINSIC CARRIER CONCENTRATION

𝟐
At a finite temperature, the number of electrons in the conduction band is equal to the number The Fermi level is located near the middle of the bandgap. Substituting 𝑵(𝑬) = 𝑵 (𝒌𝑻)𝟑/𝟐
𝝅 𝑪
𝑬
of holes in the valence band. and 𝑭(𝑬) ≅ 𝒆 𝑬 𝑬𝑭 /𝒌𝑻 into 𝒏 =
𝑬𝒕𝒐𝒑
∫𝟎 𝑵(𝑬)𝑭(𝑬)𝒅𝑬 yields:
𝑬𝑭 is independent of temperature for an intrinsic semiconductor.
2 / /
𝑛= 𝑁 (𝑘𝑇) 𝐸. 𝑒 𝑑𝐸
𝜋
If we let 𝑥 ≡ :
For an intrinsic Because the integral is
2 / the standard form and
semiconductor, 𝑛= 𝑁 exp 𝐸 /𝑘𝑇 𝑥 𝑒 d𝑥 = 𝑁 exp 𝐸 /𝑘𝑇
𝜋 equals 𝜋/2
𝒏 = 𝒑 = 𝒏𝒊 where
𝑛 is the intrinsic If we refer to the bottom of the conduction band as 𝐸 instead of 𝐸 = 0, we obtain for the electron
carrier density. density in the conduction band
𝒏 = 𝑵𝑪 𝐞𝐱𝐩 𝑬𝑭 − 𝑬𝑪 /𝒌𝑻]
where
/
𝑁 ≡ 12 2𝜋𝑚 𝑘𝑇/ℎ For Si; 𝑁 is 2.86 × 10 cm At 300K
/
𝑁 ≡ 2 2𝜋𝑚 𝑘𝑇/ℎ For GaAs; 𝑁 is 4.7 × 10 cm At 300K
Fig. 17 Intrinsic semiconductor. (a) Schematic band diagram. (b) Density of states.
(c) Fermi distribution function. (d) Carrier concentration.

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1.5 INTRINSIC CARRIER CONCENTRATION 1.5 INTRINSIC CARRIER CONCENTRATION

Similarly, we can obtain the hole density 𝑝 in the valence band: The Fermi level for an intrinsic semiconductor is obtained by above
equations:

𝒑 = 𝑵𝑽 𝐞𝐱𝐩 𝑬𝑽 − 𝑬𝑭 /𝒌𝑻] 𝐸 = 𝐸 = 𝐸 + 𝐸 /2 + (𝑘𝑇/2)ln 𝑁 /𝑁

At RT, the second term is much smaller than the bandgap. Hence, the
intrinsic Fermi level 𝐸 of an intrinsic semiconductor generally lies very
and close to the middle of the bandgap. Using mass action law (𝒏𝒑 = 𝒏𝟐𝒊 ):
/
𝑁 ≡ 2 2𝜋𝑚 𝑘𝑇/ℎ
𝑛 = 𝑁 𝑁 exp −𝐸 /𝑘𝑇
where 𝑁 is the effective density of states in the valence band for both Si and and
GaAs.
𝑛 = 𝑁 𝑁 exp −𝐸 /2𝑘𝑇
At room temperature, 𝑁 is 2.66 × 10 cm for silicon and 7.0 × 10 cm for
where 𝐸 ≡ 𝐸 − 𝐸 . At 300 K, 𝒏𝒊 is 𝟗. 𝟔𝟓 × 𝟏𝟎𝟗 𝒄𝒎 𝟑
for Si
gallium arsenide.
Fig. 18 Intrinsic carrier densities in Si and GaAs and 𝟐. 𝟐𝟓 × 𝟏𝟎𝟔 𝒄𝒎 𝟑 for GaAs.
as a function of the reciprocal of temperature
As expected, the larger the bandgap, the smaller the intrinsic carrier density.

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1.6 DONORS AND ACCEPTORS 1.6 DONORS AND ACCEPTORS

When a semiconductor is doped with Figure 20 shows the
impurities, the semiconductor becomes
The levels below the gap
extrinsic and impurity energy levels are measured ionization center are measured from
introduced. energies for various the top of the valence
The arsenic atom forms covalent bonds with impurities in silicon band and are acceptor
its four neighboring silicon atoms. and gallium arsenide. levels unless labeled by 𝑫
The fifth electron has a relatively small It is possible for a for donor level.
binding energy to its host arsenic atom and can
be "ionized" to become a conduction electron single atom to have The levels above the gap
at a moderate temperature. many levels; e.g. center are measured from
This electron has been "donated" to the
Fig. 19 Schematic bond pictures for (a) n-type Si with donor (arsenic)
and (b) p-type Si with acceptor (boron).
oxygen in Si has two the bottom of the
conduction band.
Fig. 19𝑏 shows that when a boron atom with three valence
donor levels and two conduction band and are
The arsenic atom is called a donor and the electrons substitutes for a silicon atom, an additional electron is acceptor levels in the donor levels unless
silicon becomes 𝒏-type because of the "accepted" to form four covalent bonds around the boron, and a forbidden energy gap.
addition of the negative charge carrier.
indicated by 𝑨 for
positively charged "hole" is created in the valence band.
This is a 𝒑-type semiconductor, and the boron is an acceptor. Fig. 20 Measured ionization energies (in eV ) for various acceptor level.
impurities in Si and GaAs.

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1.6 DONORS AND ACCEPTORS 1.6 DONORS AND ACCEPTORS

1.6.1 Nondegenerate Semiconductor

The Fermi level 𝐸 is at least 𝟑𝒌𝑻 above 𝑬𝑽 or 𝟑𝒌𝑻 below 𝑬𝑪 → nondegenerate semiconductor.
Under a complete ionization condition, we have 𝒏 = 𝑵𝑫 (𝑁 is the donor concentration).
The Fermi level in terms of the effective density of states 𝑁 and the donor concentration 𝑁 :

𝐸 − 𝐸 = 𝑘𝑇ln 𝑁 /𝑁
Similarly, the concentration of
holes is 𝒑 = 𝑵𝑨 .
The corresponding Fermi level
Fig. 22 n-Type semiconductor. (a) Schematic band diagram. (b) Density of states.
(c) Fermi distribution function. (d) Carrier concentration. Note that 𝒏𝒑 = 𝒏𝒊 𝟐 .
𝐸 − 𝐸 = 𝑘𝑇ln 𝑁 /𝑁
Figure 22 illustrates the procedure for obtaining the carrier concentrations for an 𝑛-type semiconductor.
The higher the donor The Fermi level is closer to the bottom of the conduction band, and the electron concentration (upper
concentration, the closer Fermi shaded area) is much larger than the hole concentration (lower shaded area).
Fig. 21 Schematic energy band representation of extrinsic semiconductors
level to the bottom of the
with (a) donor ions and (b) acceptor ions. conduction band.
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1.6 DONORS AND ACCEPTORS 1.6 DONORS AND ACCEPTORS

It is useful to express electron and hole densities in terms of 𝑛 and 𝐸 since 𝐸 is frequently used as a
reference level when discussing extrinsic semiconductors. SOLUTION

𝑛 = 𝑛 exp 𝐸 − 𝐸 /𝑘𝑇 and 𝑝 = 𝑛 exp 𝐸 − 𝐸 /𝑘𝑇

At 300 K , we can assume complete ionization of impurity atoms. We have
𝟐
The mass action law (𝒏𝒑 = 𝒏𝒊 ) is valid for both intrinsic and extrinsic semiconductors under 𝑛 ≈ 𝑁 = 10 cm .
thermal equilibrium conduction. 𝑝 ≈ 𝑛 /𝑁 = 9.65 × 10 /10 = 9.3 × 10 cm
EXAMPLE:
The Fermi level measured from the bottom of the conduction band is given by
A silicon ingot is doped with 10 arsenic atoms /cm . Find the carrier concentrations 𝑁
and the Fermi level at room temperature ( 300 K )? 𝐸 − 𝐸 = 𝑘𝑇 ln
𝑁
= 0.0259ln 2.86 × 10 /10 = 0.205eV.
The Fermi level measured from the intrinsic Fermi level is
Một thỏi silic được pha tạp với 1016 nguyên tử asen trên mỗi cm³. Xác định nồng độ
𝐸 − 𝐸 ≈ 𝑘𝑇𝑙𝑛 𝑁 /𝑛
hạt tải và mức Fermi ở nhiệt độ phòng (300 K)?
= 0.0259𝑙𝑛 10 /9.65 × 10 = 0.358𝑒𝑉.

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1.6 DONORS AND ACCEPTORS 1.6 DONORS AND ACCEPTORS

Under complete ionization condition, the total negative charges (electrons and ionized acceptors)
SOLUTION must equal the total positive charges (holes and ionized donors):
𝑛+𝑁 = 𝑝+𝑁
These results are Solving 𝒏𝒑 = 𝒏𝒊 𝟐 and this equation:
shown graphically
𝑁 − 𝑁 + (𝑁 −𝑁 ) + 4𝑛 1 𝑁 − 𝑁 + (𝑁 −𝑁 ) + 4𝑛
in Fig. 23 𝑛 = ; 𝑝 =
2
𝑝 = 𝑛 ⁄𝑛 . 𝑛 =𝑛 𝑝 .
The subscript 𝑛 refers to the 𝑛-type semiconductor. Because the electron is the dominant carrier, it is
called the majority carrier. The hole in the 𝑛-type semiconductor is called the minority carrier.
Generally, the magnitude of the net impurity concentration 𝑁 − 𝑁 is greater than the intrinsic
carrier concentration 𝑛 :
Fig. 23 Band diagram showing Fermi level 𝐸 and intrinsic Fermi level 𝑬𝒊 . 𝑛 ≈𝑁 −𝑁 if 𝑁 >𝑁 ,
𝑝 ≈𝑁 −𝑁 if 𝑁 >𝑁 .

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1.6 DONORS AND ACCEPTORS 1.6 DONORS AND ACCEPTORS

1.6.2 Degenerate Semiconductor
At low temperatures, As the temperature is further
some electrons are increased, the electron For very heavily doped 𝑛-type or 𝑝-type semiconductor, 𝐸 will be above 𝐸 or below 𝐸 .
"frozen" at the donor concentration remains The semiconductor is referred to as a degenerate semiconductor.
level and the electron essentially the same over a High impurity concentration causes a reduction of the bandgap. The bandgap reduction
density is less than the wide temperature range. Δ𝐸 for silicon at room temperature is given by
donor concentration. This is the extrinsic
region. 𝑁
/
As the temperature is
Δ𝐸 = 22 meV
increased, the condition As the temperature is 10
of complete increased even further, the
ionization is reached, intrinsic carrier where the doping is in cm .
(i.e., 𝑛 = 𝑁 ). concentration becomes For example, for 𝑁 ≤ 10 cm , Δ𝐸 ≤ 0.022eV, which is less than 2% of the original
comparable to the donor bandgap.
concentration. Beyond this
point, the semiconductor However, for 𝑁 ≥ 𝑁 = 2.86 × 10 cm , Δ𝐸 ≥ 0.12eV, which is a significant fraction of 𝐸 .
Fig. 25 Electron density as a function of temperature for a
Si sample with a donor concentration of 10 cm .
becomes intrinsic.
37 38