that ionization is the mechanism whereby an electron can absorb sufficient energy to
break away from the atomic structure and enter the conduction band. You will note
that the energy associated with each electron is measured in electron volts (eV). The
unit of measure is appropriate, since
W QV eV (1.2)
as derived from the defining equation for voltage V W/Q. The charge Q is the charge
associated with a single electron.
Substituting the charge of an electron and a potential difference of 1 volt into Eq.
(1.2) will result in an energy level referred to as one electron volt. Since energy is
also measured in joules and the charge of one electron 1.6 10
19
coulomb,
W QV (1.6 10
19
C)(1 V)
and 1 eV 1.6 10
19
J (1.3)
At 0 K or absolute zero (273.15°C), all the valence electrons of semiconductor
materials find themselves locked in their outermost shell of the atom with energy
levels associated with the valence band of Fig. 1.8b. However, at room temperature
(300 K, 25°C) a large number of valence electrons have acquired sufficient energy to
leave the valence band, cross the energy gap defined by E
g
in Fig. 1.8b and enter the
conduction band. For silicon E
g
is 1.1 eV, for germanium 0.67 eV, and for gallium
arsenide 1.41 eV. The obviously lower E
g
for germanium accounts for the increased
number of carriers in that material as compared to silicon at room temperature. Note
for the insulator that the energy gap is typically 5 eV or more, which severely limits
the number of electrons that can enter the conduction band at room temperature. The
conductor has electrons in the conduction band even at 0 K. Quite obviously, there-
fore, at room temperature there are more than enough free carriers to sustain a heavy
flow of charge, or current.
We will find in Section 1.5 that if certain impurities are added to the intrinsic
semiconductor materials, energy states in the forbidden bands will occur which will
cause a net reduction in E
g
for both semiconductor materials—consequently, increased
carrier density in the conduction band at room temperature!
1.5 EXTRINSIC MATERIALS—
n- AND p-TYPE
The characteristics of semiconductor materials can be altered significantly by the ad-
dition of certain impurity atoms into the relatively pure semiconductor material. These
impurities, although only added to perhaps 1 part in 10 million, can alter the band
structure sufficiently to totally change the electrical properties of the material.
A semiconductor material that has been subjected to the doping process is
called an extrinsic material.
There are two extrinsic materials of immeasurable importance to semiconductor
device fabrication: n-type and p-type. Each will be described in some detail in the
following paragraphs.
n-Type Material
Both the n- and p-type materials are formed by adding a predetermined number of
impurity atoms into a germanium or silicon base. The n-type is created by introduc-
ing those impurity elements that have five valence electrons (pentavalent), such as an-
timony, arsenic, and phosphorus. The effect of such impurity elements is indicated in
7
1.5 Extrinsic Materials—n- and p-Type