The Schottky Diode

 A Schottky Diode is a metal-semiconductor diode with a low forward voltage drop and a very fast
switching speed.
 Their forward voltage drop is substantially less than that of the conventional silicon pn-junction
diode.
 Have many useful applications ranging from rectification, signal conditioning and
switching, through to TTL(Transistor Transistor logic) and CMOS (Complementary metal
oxide semi conductor) logic gates due mainly to their low power and fast switching
speeds.
 Unlike a conventional pn-junction diode which is formed from a piece of P-type material and a
piece of N-type material, Schottky Diodes are constructed using a metal electrode bonded to an N-
type semiconductor.
 They are constructed using a metal compound on one side of their junction and doped with silicon
on the other side, and so do not have depletion layer.
 They are classed as unipolar devices unlike typical pn-junction diodes which are bipolar devices.
 The Schottky Diode
2
Simplified construction of Schottky Diode Construction and Symbol

• The most common contact

metal used for Schottky diode
construction is “Silicide”
which is a highly conductive
silicon and metal compound.
• This silicide metal-silicon
contact has a reasonably low
ohmic resistance value
allowing more current to flow
producing a smaller forward
voltage drop of around Vƒ
<0.4V when conducting.
 Different metal compounds will produce different forward voltage drops,
typically between 0.3 to 0.5 volts. A lightly doped n-type silicon
semiconductor is joined with a metal electrode to produce what is called a
“metal-semiconductor junction”.
 The width of the ms-junction will depend on the type of metal and
semiconductor material used.
 When forward-biased, electrons move from the n-type material to the metal
electrode allowing current to flow.
 Thus current through the Schottky diode is the result of the drift of majority
carriers. Since there is no p-type semiconductor material (no minority
carriers ,holes) , when reverse biased, the diodes’ conduction stops very
quickly and changes to blocking current flow, as for a conventional pn-
junction diode.
 Thus for a Schottky diode there is a very rapid response to changes in bias
and demonstrating the characteristics of a rectifying diode.
 The Schottky Diode
4
Schottky Diode IV-Characteristics
 The knee voltage at which a Schottky diode turns “ON” and starts conducting is at a much lower
voltage level than its pn-junction equivalent as shown in the following I-V characteristics.

 The general shape of the metal-semiconductor Schottky diode I-V characteristics is very
similar to that of a standard pn-junction diode, except the corner or knee voltage at
which the ms-junction diode starts to conduct is much lower at around 0.4 volts.
 Schottky Diode IV-Characteristics
5  Due to low ohmic resistance , the forward current of a silicon Schottky diode can be many
times larger than that of a typical pn-junction diode, depending on the metal electrode used.
 Since P = V*I ,a smaller forward voltage drop for a given diode current, 𝐼𝐷 will produce
lower forward power dissipation in the form of heat across the junction.
 The lower power loss makes the Schottky diode a good choice in low-voltage and high-
current applications such as solar photovoltaic panels where the forward-voltage, (VF) drop
across a standard pn-junction diode would produce an excessive heating effect.
 However, it must be noted that the reverse leakage current, (IR) for a Schottky diode is
generally much larger than for a pn-junction diode.
 Also due to the Schottky diode being fabricated with a metal-to-semiconductor junction, it
tends to be slightly more expensive than standard pn-junction silicon diodes which have
similar voltage and current specifications.

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PIN Diode
6

 A Pin diode is a special type of diode that contains an un-doped intrinsic semiconductor between
the p-type and n-type semiconductor regions.
 It differs from a normal diode as it has an extra layer in between the p and the n junctions.
 The intrinsic layer is a pure crystal of silicon or germanium without any doping in it ,and so does
not conduct electric current well.
 The p-type and n-type layer is heavily doped as they are used for ohmic contacts.
 It’s like having a p region, followed by an intrinsic region and then an N region, thus making it a
PIN diode and hence derived the name from the same as shown below;
 PIN Diode
7 PIN Diode Structure
 The diode consists the P-region and N-region which is separated by the intrinsic semiconductor
material.
 In P-region the hole is the majority charge carrier while in n-region the electron is the majority
charge carrier.
 The intrinsic region has no free charge carrier and it acts as an insulator between n and the p-type
region.
 The i-region has the high resistance which obstructs the flow of electrons to pass through it as
shown below;

Working of PIN Diode

The working of the PIN diode is similar to the ordinary diode. When the diode is unbiased, their
charge carrier will diffuse. The word diffusion means the charge carriers try to move to their region
until the charges become equilibrium in the depletion region.
 Working of PIN Diode
8
electrons

Let the N and I-layer make the depletion region. The diffusion of the hole and electron across the
region generates the depletion layer across the NI-region. The thin depletion layer induces across n-
region, and thick depletion region of opposite polarity induces across the I-region.

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 Working of PIN Diode
9
Forward Biased PIN Diode
 When forward biased, the charges are injected into the I-region from the P and N-region and this
reduces the forward resistance of the diode (behaves like a variable resistor)
 The charge carrier which enters from P and N-region into the i-region are not immediately
combined into the intrinsic region.
 The finite quantity of charge stored in the intrinsic region decreases their resistivity.

 The quantity of charge stored in the depletion region,

 where τ is the recombination time of the charges ( this determines the quantity of the charges
stored in the intrinsic region ) and 𝐼𝐹 is the forward current flowing into the I region.
 The resistance (Rs) of the current under forward biased is inversely proportional to the charge Q
stored in the intrinsic region.
 Working of PIN Diode
10
For forward Biased PIN Diode

Where, w – width region

𝜇𝑁 – electron mobility
𝜇𝑂 – hole mobility
From equation (1) and (2), we get;

The above equation shows that the resistance of the intrinsic region depends on the width of the
region.
Working of PIN Diode
11
Reversed Biased PIN Diode
 When the reverse voltage is applied across the diode, the width of the depletion region increases.
 The thickness of the region increases until the entire mobile charge carrier of the I-region are swept away from
it.
 The reverse voltage required for removing the complete charge carrier from the I-region is known as the swept
voltage.
 In reverse bias, the diode behaves like a capacitor and the P and N region acts as the positive and negative
plates of the capacitor, and the intrinsic region is the insulator between the plates as equation

Where, A – junction diode area

w – intrinsic region thickness, 𝜖 = 𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑚𝑖𝑡𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑐 𝑟𝑒𝑔𝑖𝑜𝑛
 Applications of PIN diode.
 Being intrinsic (undoped) makes it have a relatively high resistance which gives it
two advantages as compared to ordinary PN diode.
 1) it has decreased capacitance 𝐶𝑝𝑛 because capacitance is inversely
proportional to the separation of P and N regions and hence it allows the diode
faster response time and hence PIN diodes are used at high frequencies ( more
than 300MHz).
 Possibility of greater electric field between P and N junctions enhances the
electron hole pair generation thereby enabling PIN diode to process even very
weak input signals.
 Tunnel diode
13
 First introduced by Dr. Leo Easki.
 Highly conductive two terminal PN junction diode having doping density about 1000
times higher as compared to an ordinary junction diode.
 The heavy doping produces three unusual effects
i. Reduced depletion layer width (extremely small value of around 0.00001mm
ii. Reduces reverse voltage to a small value-approaching zero such that the diode appears to
be broken down for any reverse voltage.
iii. Thirdly ,it produces a negative resistance section on the V/I characteristic of the diode.
 It is called a tunnel diode because due to its extremely thin depletion layer ,electrons are able
to tunnel through the potential barrier at relatively low forward bias voltage ( less than 0.05V).
 Such diodes are fabricated from germanium, gallium arsenide and gallium antimonide.
 Commonly used schematic symbols for the diode

It should be handled with caution because

being a low power device, it is damaged
easily by heat and static electricity.

+
V/I characteristics
 As seen ,the forward bias produces
immediate conduction i.e as soon as
forward bias is applied ,significant
current is produced which rises to a peak
value 𝐼𝑃 when the applied voltage
reaches a value 𝑉𝑃 .
 When forward biased is increased further
,the diode current starts decreasing till it
achieves its minimum value called valley
current 𝐼𝑉 corresponding to valley
voltage 𝑉𝑉 .
 For voltages greater than 𝑉𝑉 ,currents
starts increasing again as in ordinary
junction diode.

 As seen in the figure above ,between peak point A and valley point B, current decreases with
increase in voltage.ie the tunnel voltage experiences negative resistance in this region.
 This constitute the most useful property of the diode where the negative resistance produces
power.So by offsetting losses in L and C components of a tank cct, such a negative resistance
permits oscillations ,hence used as a very high frequency oscillator.
 Tunneling theory
 At zero bias, the energy levels of conduction electrons in N region of the
junction are slightly out of alignment with the energy levels of holes in the P
region.
 When forward bias is slightly increased ,electron levels start getting aligned
with the hole levels on the other side of the junction thus permitting some
electrons to cross over. This kind of junction is called tunneling.
 As voltage is increased to peak voltage ,all conduction band electrons in
the N-region are able to cross over to the valence band in the P region
because the two bands are exactly aligned and so maximum current
(peak current ) flows in the circuit.
 After 𝑉𝑃 ,as the applied voltage is increased ,current starts decreasing
because the two bands start getting out of alignment,
 The current reaches its minimum value (valley current) when the
two are totally out of alignment at a forward bias
of 𝑉𝑉 valley voltage .
 For greater voltages than 𝑉𝑉 ,current starts increasing again
exactly as it does in the case of a ordinary P-N junction diode.
 Tunneling is much faster than normal crossing which enables a
tunnel diode to switch ON and OFF faster than an ordinary
diode.
 That is why, tunnel diode is extensively used in special
applications requiring very fast switching speeds like high speed
computer memories and high frequency oscillators etc.
 Negative resistance (-𝑅𝑁 ) of tunnel diode
 The resistance offered by the diode within the negative resistance section of its
characteristic.
 It equals the reciprocal of the slope of the characteristic in this region.
 May be found by 𝑅𝑁 = − 𝑑𝑉Τ𝑑𝐼
 Its value depends on semiconductor material used (varying from -10 to -200.
  Equivalent circuit for a tunnel diode

The indicated parameters limit the frequency at

which the diode may be used and hence they are
important in determining the switching speed.
  Tunnel diode oscillator
 The basic purpose of an oscillator is to convert dc into ac.
• The value of R is selected so as to bias the
diode D in the negative resistance region
A-B.
• The working or quiescent point Q is almost
at the centre of the curve A-B.
• When S is closed, the current immediately
rises to a value determined by R and the
diode resistance which are in series.
• The applied voltage V divides across D
and R according to the ratio of their
resistances.

• However as 𝑉𝑇 exceeds 𝑉𝑝 ,diode is driven into negative area and its resistance
starts to increase.
• 𝑉𝑇 increases further till it becomes equal to valley voltage 𝑉𝑉 .
• Further increase in 𝑉𝑇 drives the diode into positive resistance region.
• The resulting increase in current now increases 𝑉𝑅 but correspondingly
decreases 𝑉𝑇 ,thereby bringing the diode back into negative resistance region.This
decrease in 𝑉𝑇 increases the circuit current till point A is reached when 𝑉𝑇 = 𝑉𝑃 .
• This describes one cycle of operation .In this way ,the circuit will continue to oscillate
back and forth through the negative region A-B and the output across R is an
alternating wave form.
• So when switch S is closed ,the diode is set into oscillations whose frequency equals
the resonant frequency of the tank given by
 The Light Emitting Diode
22
Introduction to LED: Fundamentals of light
 According to the Quantum Theory ,light consists of discrete packets of energy
called photons.
 The energy contained in a photon depends on the frequency of the light and is
given by the equation;
𝐸 = ℎ𝑓
Where ℎ 𝑖𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑃𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑘 ′ 𝑠 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑡 (6.625 ∗ 10−34 𝐽𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑒 − 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑).
 In this equation, energy E is in Joules while the frequency is in Hertz (Hz).
 Photon energy is directly proportional to frequency.
 Velocity of light on the other side is given by
𝑐 = 𝑓𝜆
Where 𝑐 𝑖𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑣𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑙𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 3 ∗ 108 𝑚/𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑
𝜆 𝑖𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑎𝑣𝑒𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑙𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝑖𝑛 𝑚𝑒𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠.
 The Light Emitting Diode
23

 Light Emitting Diodes are among the most widely used of all the different types of semiconductor
diodes available today and are commonly used in TV’s and colour displays.
 The LED is a PN-junction diode which emits light when an electric current passes through it in the
forward direction
 In the LED, the recombination of charge carrier takes place.
 The electron from the N-side and the hole from the P-side are combined and gives the energy in
the form of heat and light.
 The LED is made of semiconductor material which is colourless, and the light is radiated through
the junction of the diode.
 They are the most visible type of diode, that emit a fairly narrow bandwidth of either visible light
at different coloured wavelengths, invisible infra-red light for remote controls or laser type light
when a forward current is passed through them.
 The LED is just a specialized type of diode as they have very similar electrical
characteristics to a PN junction diode.
 This means that an LED will pass current in its forward direction but block the flow of
current in the reverse direction.
 Light emitting diodes are made from a very thin layer of fairly heavily doped
semiconductor material and depending on the semiconductor material used and the
amount of doping, when forward biased an LED will emit a coloured light at a particular
spectral wavelength.
The Light Emitting Diode
25

 The recombination of the charge carrier occurs in the P-type material, and hence P-material is the
surface of the LED.
 For the maximum emission of light, the anode is deposited at the edge of the P-type material.
 The cathode is made of gold film, and is usually placed at the bottom of the N-region. This gold
layer of cathode helps in reflecting the light to the surface. This is illustrated below;

Sunday, August
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The Light Emitting Diode
26
 When the diode is forward biased, electrons from the semiconductors conduction band recombine
with holes from the valence band releasing sufficient energy to produce photons which emit a
monochromatic (single colour) of light.
 Because of this thin layer a reasonable number of these photons can leave the junction and radiate
away producing a coloured light output.
 So when operated in a forward biased direction LEDs are semiconductor devices that convert
electrical energy into light energy.
The Light Emitting Diode
27
LED CIRCUIT SYMBOL
The Light Emitting Diode
28
TYPICAL LEDS
The Light Emitting Diode
29
 Light Emitting Diode Colours
 Unlike normal signal diodes which are made for detection or power rectification, and which are
made from either Germanium or Silicon semiconductor materials, Light Emitting Diodes are made
from exotic semiconductor compounds such as Gallium Arsenide (GaAs), Gallium Phosphide
(GaP), Gallium Arsenide Phosphide (GaAsP), Silicon Carbide (SiC) or Gallium Indium Nitride
(GaInN) all mixed together at different ratios to produce a distinct wavelength of colour.
 Different LED compounds emit light in specific regions of the visible light spectrum and therefore
produce different intensity levels.
 The exact choice of the semiconductor material used will determine the overall wavelength of the
photon light emissions and therefore the resulting colour of the light emitted.
Subtopic 7: The Light Emitting Diode
30
Light Emitting Diode Colours

Light Emitting Diode Colours

Typical LED Characteristics

Semiconductor
Wavelength Colour VF @ 20mA
Material

GaAs 850-940nm Infra-Red 1.2v

GaAsP 630-660nm Red 1.8v

GaAsP 605-620nm Amber 2.0v

GaAsP:N 585-595nm Yellow 2.2v

AlGaP 550-570nm Green 3.5v

SiC 430-505nm Blue 3.6v

GaInN 450nm White 4.0v

The Light Emitting Diode
31

 Thus, the actual colour of a light emitting diode is determined by the wavelength of the
light emitted, which in turn is determined by the actual semiconductor compound used
in forming the PN junction during manufacture.
 Therefore the colour of the light emitted by an LED is NOT determined by the colouring
of the LED’s plastic body although these are slightly coloured to both enhance the light
output and to indicate its colour when its not being illuminated by an electrical supply.
 Light emitting diodes are available in a wide range of colours with the most common
being RED, AMBER, YELLOW and GREEN and are thus widely used as visual
indicators and as moving light displays.
 Recently developed blue and white coloured LEDs are also available but these tend to be
much more expensive than the normal standard colours due to the production costs of
mixing together two or more complementary colours at an exact ratio within the
semiconductor compound and also by injecting nitrogen atoms into the crystal structure
during the doping process.
The Light Emitting Diode
32
 The main P-type dopant used in the manufacture of Light Emitting Diodes is Gallium
(Ga, atomic number 31) and that the main N-type dopant used is Arsenic (As, atomic
number 33) giving the resulting compound of Gallium Arsenide (GaAs) crystalline
structure.
 The problem with using Gallium Arsenide on its own as the semiconductor compound
is that it radiates large amounts of low brightness infra-red radiation (850nm-940nm
approx.) from its junction when a forward current is flowing through it.
 The amount of infra-red light it produces is okay for television remote controls but not
very useful if we want to use the LED as an indicating light.
 But by adding Phosphorus (P, atomic number 15), as a third dopant the overall
wavelength of the emitted radiation is reduced to below 680nm giving visible red light
to the human eye.
 Further refinements in the doping process of the PN junction have resulted in a range of
colours spanning the spectrum of visible light as well as infra-red and ultra-violet
wavelengths.
 By mixing together a variety of semiconductor, metal and gas compounds the following
list of LEDs can be produced.
Subtopic 7: The Light Emitting Diode
33
TYPES OF LIGHT EMITTING DIODE
 Gallium Arsenide (GaAs) – infra-red
 Gallium Arsenide Phosphide (GaAsP) – red to infra-red, orange
 Aluminium Gallium Arsenide Phosphide (AlGaAsP) – high-brightness red, orange-red, orange,
and yellow
 Gallium Phosphide (GaP) – red, yellow and green
 Aluminium Gallium Phosphide (AlGaP) – green
 Gallium Nitride (GaN) – green, emerald green
 Gallium Indium Nitride (GaInN) – near ultraviolet, bluish-green and blue
 Silicon Carbide (SiC) – blue as a substrate
 Zinc Selenide (ZnSe) – blue
 Aluminium Gallium Nitride (AlGaN) – ultraviolet

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The Light Emitting Diode
34
TYPES OF LIGHT EMITTING DIODE
 Like conventional PN junction diodes, light emitting diodes are current-dependent devices with
its forward voltage drop VF, depending on the semiconductor compound (its light colour) and on
the forward biased LED current. Most common LED’s require a forward operating voltage of
between approximately 1.2 to 3.6 volts with a forward current rating of about 10 to 30 mA, with 12
to 20 mA being the most common range.
 Both the forward operating voltage and forward current vary depending on the semiconductor
material used but the point where conduction begins and light is produced is about 1.2V for a
standard red LED to about 3.6V for a blue LED.
 The exact voltage drop will depend on the manufacturer because of the different dopant materials
and wavelengths used.
 The voltage drop across the LED at a particular current value, for example 20mA, will also depend
on the initial conduction VF point.
 As an LED is effectively a diode, its forward current to voltage characteristics curves can be
plotted for each diode colour as shown below.
The Light Emitting Diode
35
Light Emitting Diodes I-V Characteristics.
The Light Emitting Diode
36
Light Emitting Diodes I-V Characteristics.
 Before a LED can “emit” any form of light, it needs a current to flow through it, as it is a
current dependant device with their light output intensity being directly proportional to
the forward current flowing through the LED.
 As the LED is to be connected in a forward bias condition across a power supply it
should be current limited using a series resistor to protect it from excessive current flow.
 (Never connect an LED directly to a battery or power supply as it will be destroyed
almost instantly because too much current will pass through and burn it out).
 Each LED has its own forward voltage drop across the PN junction and this parameter
which is determined by the semiconductor material used, is the forward voltage drop
for a specified amount of forward conduction current, (typically for a forward current of
20mA).
 In most cases LEDs are operated from a low voltage DC supply, with a series resistor, RS
used to limit the forward current to a safe value from say 5mA, for a simple LED
indicator to 30mA or more where a high brightness light output is needed. Sunday, August
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The Light Emitting Diode
37
LED Series Resistance.
The series resistor value RS is calculated by simply using Ohm´s Law, by knowing the required
forward current IF of the LED, the supply voltage VS across the combination and the expected
forward voltage drop of the LED, VF at the required current level, the current limiting resistor is
calculated as:

LED Series Resistor Circuit

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The Light Emitting Diode
38
Solved example
An amber coloured LED with a forward volt drop of 2 volts is to be connected to a 5.0v
stabilised DC power supply. Using the circuit above calculate the value of the series resistor
required to limit the forward current to less than 10mA. Also calculate the current flowing
through the diode if a 100Ω series resistor is used instead of the calculated first.
Solution
i. series resistor required at 10mA.

ii. with a 100Ω series resistor.

Subtopic 7: The Light Emitting Diode
39
Connecting LED’s in Series
The Light Emitting Diode
40
Connecting LED’s in Series
 Although the LED series chain has the same current flowing through it, the series
voltage drop across them needs to be considered when calculating the required
resistance of the current limiting resistor, RS. If we assume that each LED has a voltage
drop across it when illuminated of 1.2 volts, then the voltage drop across all three will be
3 x 1.2v = 3.6 volts.
 If we also assume that the three LEDs are to be illuminated from the same 5 volt logic
device or supply with a forward current of about 10mA, the same as above. Then the
voltage drop across the resistor, RS and its resistance value will be calculated as:
Subtopic 7: The Light Emitting Diode
41
Question
Four LEDs are connected in series with a current limiting resistor Rs= 500 Ohms across a supply
voltage of Vs=8 volts.
If the forward current of each diode is If=10mA, then determine the forward voltage of each LED.
Solution
The voltage drop across the resistor
Rs=If*Rs =(10/1000)*500=5 volts
Hence the voltage across the four diodes is (Vs-VRs)=8 – 5 =3 volts
Finally, Vf=3 V/4 diodes=0.75 volts.
Subtopic 7: The Light Emitting Diode
42
Advantages of LED in electronic displays
The followings are the major advantages of the LED in an electronics displays.
i. The LED are smaller in sizes, and they can be stacked together to form numeric and alphanumeric
display in the high-density matrix.
ii. The intensity of the light output of the LED depends on the current flows through it. The intensity
of their light can be controlled smoothly.
iii. The LED are available which emits light in the different colours like red, yellow, green and amber.
iv. The on and off time or switching time of the LED is less than of 1 nanoseconds. Because of this,
the LED are used for the dynamic operation.
v. The LEDs are very economical and giving the high degree of reliability because they are
manufactured with the same technology as that of the transistor.
vi. The LED are operated over a wide range of temperature say 0° – 70°. Also, it is very durable and
can withstand shock and variation.
vii. The LED have a high efficiency, but they require moderate power for operation. Typically, the
voltage of 1.2V and the current of 20mA is required for full brightness. Therefore, it is used in a
place where less power are available.
Subtopic
43 7: The Light Emitting Diode
Disadvantages of LED
 The LEDs consume more power as compared to LCDs, and their cost is high. Also, it is
not used for making the large display.