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Semiconductor Germanium Gallium Arsenide Charge Carriers N-Type Semiconductor Holes P-Type Semiconductor

A p-n junction diode is made from silicon or other semiconductors with added impurities to create an n-type region of negative charge carriers and a p-type region of positive charge carriers. When joined together, the regions form a depletion zone without charge carriers between them at the p-n junction. The diode allows electron flow through the depletion region from the n-type side to the p-type side when a higher potential is applied to the p-type side, but does not allow reverse electron flow.

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27 views1 page

Semiconductor Germanium Gallium Arsenide Charge Carriers N-Type Semiconductor Holes P-Type Semiconductor

A p-n junction diode is made from silicon or other semiconductors with added impurities to create an n-type region of negative charge carriers and a p-type region of positive charge carriers. When joined together, the regions form a depletion zone without charge carriers between them at the p-n junction. The diode allows electron flow through the depletion region from the n-type side to the p-type side when a higher potential is applied to the p-type side, but does not allow reverse electron flow.

Uploaded by

Adriel
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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pn junction diode[edit]

Main article: pn diode


A pn junction diode is made of a crystal of semiconductor, usually silicon,
but germanium and gallium arsenide are also used. Impurities are added to it to create a region on
one side that contains negative charge carriers (electrons), called an n-type semiconductor, and a
region on the other side that contains positive charge carriers (holes), called a p-type semiconductor.
When the n-type and p-type materials are attached together, a momentary flow of electrons occur
from the n to the p side resulting in a third region between the two where no charge carriers are
present. This region is called the depletion region because there are no charge carriers (neither
electrons nor holes) in it. The diode's terminals are attached to the n-type and p-regions. The
boundary between these two regions, called a pn junction, is where the action of the diode takes
place. When a sufficiently higher electrical potential is applied to the P side (the anode) than to the N
side (the cathode), it allows electrons to flow through the depletion region from the N-type side to the
P-type side. The junction does not allow the flow of electrons in the opposite direction when the
potential is applied in reverse, creating, in a sense, an electrical check valve.

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