VACUUM & SEMICON

VACUUM TUBES AND SEMICONDUCTOR THEORY

PREPARED BY: VILLANUEVA, CARMELO R.

VACUU & SEMICON

ELECTRONICS

Science dealing with the study

and applications of devices,
circuits and systems involving the
flow of electrons in solid, liquid,
gas or vacuum.
VACUUM & SEMICON

TRACE OF IMPORTANTS EVENTS IN

ELECTRONICS HISTORY

1901 RADIO

1906 Vacuum Tube Triode

(Dr. Lee de Forest)

1947
Transistor (Shockley, Brattain
and Bardeen)
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TRACE OF IMPORTANTS EVENTS IN

ELECTRONICS HISTORY

1958 Integrated Circuits

1971 Microprocessors
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APPLICATIONS
• 1. COMMUNICATIONS • Includes AM radio, FM
ELECTRONICS radio with stereo and
Television
• Equipments are divided
into either transmitter
or receivers
• Satellite
communications being a
transmit-receive system
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APPLICATIONS

• 2. ELECTRIC POWER • Applications in any system

involving generation and
distribution of 60 Hz ac
power
• Includes lighting, heating,
motors and generators
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APPLICATIONS

• 3. DIGITAL ELECTRONICS• Operations using pulses of

currents and voltages which
illustrates an on and off
condition, high and low, 0
and 1
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APPLICATIONS

• 4. AUTOMOTIVE • Used of electronics

ELECTRONICS equipments in vehicles for
battery charging, power
assist functions, measuring
gauges and control of
engine
• One of the best application
is electronic ignition
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APPLICATIONS
• 5. INDUSTRIAL • Use of electronics in
ELECTRONICS welding, control, detection
and computer-controlled
machinery
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APPLICATIONS

• Use of electronics principle

• 6. MEDICAL ELECTRONICS
in medical research,
diagnosis and treatment
with the aid of electronic
equipment
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VACUUM TUBES

• Dominated electronics in the early 1900s

• Dominated electronics in the early 1900s
• Used in special applications such as CRTs, high power RF
• Used in special applications such as CRTs, high power RF
amplifiers and high power microwave devices
amplifiers and high power microwave devices
• Typically tubes consume large amount of power, larger in
• Typically tubes consume large amount of power, larger in
size and produce more heat that is why they are less
size and produce more heat that is why they are less
reliable than semiconductor devices
reliable than semiconductor devices
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VACUUM TUBE DIODE

• Fleming Valve
• Developed in 1904 by John Ambrose Fleming
• Component that conduct current in one direction from
cathode to node
• It has heater that is connected to an AC power source
and filament that heats the cathode element inside the
tube to a high temperature
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VACUUM TUBE DIODE

• Electrons are produced from the cathode through

thermionic emission
• Used as a rectifier
• Problem: existence of space charge (cloud of
electrons emitted from the cathode bit does not have
sufficient energy to reach the plate)
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SCHEMATIC SYMBOL

PLATE

CATHODE HEATER OR
FILAMENT
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VACUUM TUBE TRIODE

• Audion
• Developed in 1906 by Lee de Forest
• Addition of a control grid to eliminate space charge
• Has three electrodes anode, cathode and control
grid
• Used as an amplifier
• Problem: interelectrode capacitance and very high
grid to plate capacitance
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SCHEMATIC SYMBOL

PLATE

CONTROL
GRID

CATHODE HEATER OR
FILAMENT
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VACUUM TUBE TETRODE

• Developed in 1926 by Henry Round

• It has 4 electrodes, anode, cathode, control grid
and screen grid
• Screen grid reduces the grid to plate capacitance,
it must have +dc voltage
• Problem: secondary emission from plate
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SCHEMATIC SYMBOL

PLATE

CONTROL
SCREEN
GRID
GRID

CATHODE HEATER OR
FILAMENT
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VACUUM TUBE PENTODE

• Developed in 1928 by Tellegen and Hist

• It has 5 electrodes and 3 grids
• Suppressor grid suppresses the effect of secondary
emission
• Has lesser grid to plate capacitance
• Expensive and noisy
VACUUM & SEMICON

SCHEMATIC SYMBOL

PLATE

SUPPRESSOR
GRID
SCREEN
CONTROL GRID
GRID

CATHODE HEATER OR
FILAMENT
VACUUM & SEMICON

VACUUM TUBE COEFFICIENTS

1.
AMPLIFICATION
FACTOR (u)
The ratio of the change in anode
voltage of an electron tube to a
change in control grid voltage that
produces the same change in anode
current when other voltages and
currents are held constant.

U=
ΔVpk/ΔVgk
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VACUUM TUBE COEFFICIENTS

2. PLATE
RESISTANCE (rp)

- The equivalent resistance of the

internal plate to cathode circuit.
- The ratio of the change in anode
voltage of an electron tube to a
change in the anode current

rp =
ΔVpk/ΔIp
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VACUUM TUBE COEFFICIENTS

3.
TRANSCONDUCTA
NCE (gm)
- The ratio of the change
in anode current to a
change in the control
grid voltage.

gm =
ΔIp/ΔVgk
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VACUUM TUBE FORMULAS

VOLTAGE GAIN
OF TRIODE

Av = uRl / Rl +
Rp

u – amplification factor
Rl – external load resistance
Rp – internal plate
resistance
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VACUUM TUBE FORMULAS

OUTPUT POWER
OF TRIODE

Po = Il Vl = Vlexp2
/Rl = Ilexp2Rl

Il – load current
Vl – load voltage
Rl – external load
resistance
VACUUM & SEMICON

VACUUM TUBE FORMULAS

OUTPUT POWER
OF TRIODE

Po = u exp2 Vgk
exp2 Rl/(Rl +
Rp)exp 2

u – amplification factor
Vgk – control grid voltage
Rp – internal plate resistance
Rl – external load resistance
VACUUM & SEMICON

EXAMPLES

What is the gain of

a vacuum tube
having the
following
parameters:
Amplification factor
is 80, external plate
load resistance of
30,000 ohms and
the tube’s internal
plate resistance is
10,000 ohms.
VACUUM & SEMICON

EXAMPLES

Calculate the
amplification
factor of a VT
Triode whose
output power is
1.94 watts, plate
resistance is 5 kΩ,
load resistance is
7kΩ and input
of 10v rms.
VACUUM & SEMICON

EXAMPLES

What is the grid

voltage required
to produce zero
plate current in a
triode whose
amplification
factor is 25 and
the plate voltage
is 200v?
VACUUM & SEMICON

EXAMPLES

What is the gain

of a VT triode
amplifier having
a μ of 100 and a
load resistance
equal to the
plate
resistance?
VACUUM & SEMICON

EXAMPLES

What is the
power output of
a 100-μ VT
amplifier
having a load
resistance of
10kΩ, plate
resistance of
5kΩ and an
input of 1Vrms?
VACUUM & SEMICON

BASICS OF ELECTRONICS

1. ELECTRONIC Process of liberating an electron

●

EMISSION from the surface of a material.

●
Primary, hot cathode
a. Thermionic ●
Application of heat energy

b. Photoelectric ●
Used of light energy
VACUUM & SEMICON

c. High Field ●
Cold cathode
Emission ●
Collision of some electrons

d. Secondary Application of strong electric

●

Emission field at the surface of metal

Work Function • Energy needed by an

(Wf) electron to be emitted from
the surface of the material
VACUUM & SEMICON

SEMICONDUCTOR FUNDAMENTALS

Is the smallest particle of an

●

ATOM element that still retains its

characteristics.

The nucleus consists of

positively charged particles
called protons and
uncharged particles called
neutrons. The electrons are
the basic particles of
negative charge.
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SEMICONDUCTOR FUNDAMENTALS

BOHR’S THEORY

To compute for the

number of electrons
in every orbit

Ne = 2nexp2
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CLASSIFICATIONS of MATERIALS

Number of valence electrons is

●
a. Conductor
1-3 with very high conductivity

Number of valence electrons is 4

●

b. Semiconductor
with intermediate conductivity

Number of valence electrons is

●

c. Insulator
5-8 with very low conductivity
VACUUM & SEMICON

CLASSIFICATIONS of MATERIALS

Aluminum Neon

Silicon
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CLASSIFICATIONS of MATERIALS
VACUUM & SEMICON

CLASSIFICATIONS of MATERIALS

a. Conductor ●
Eg = 0
●
Eg = 1.1 eV (Si)
b. Semiconductor ●
Eg = 0.62 eV (Ge)
●
Eg = 1.41 eV (GaAs)

c. Insulator ●
Eg > 5eV
VACUUM & SEMICON

SEMICONDUCTOR FUNDAMENTALS

ION

An atom or molecule that has been

electrically unbalanced by the loss
or gain of one or more electrons

Positive Ion (Cation) – an

atom that has lost an
electron

Negative Ion (Anion) – an

atom that has gained an
electron
VACUUM & SEMICON

SEMICONDUCTOR

• Material conductivity level

somewhere between the extremes
of an insulator and a conductor
• Most common semiconductor
includes Silicon (Si), Germanium (Ge)
and Gallium Arsenide (GaAs)
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Advantages of Silicon over Germanium

• Cheaper and abundant

• More stable
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Features of Pure Semiconductor

• Resistance is more than conductor but

lesser than insulator
• Negative temperature coefficient
• Electron valence is 4
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• The union of atoms sharing

Covalent Bonds valence electrons
• In case of semiconductor, atoms
do not usually gain or lose the
electrons but share them with
neighbouring atoms resulting in
an outer configuration with 8
outer electrons following the
octet rule
• OCTET RULE specifies that atom is
physically, chemically and
electrically stable if it has 8
valence electrons
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Crystal Structure
• Definite geometrical
form of the internal
atoms
• DIAMOND is an example
of the crystalline
structure for pure
carbon
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• Pure semiconductor without any

Intrinsic doping
Semiconductor • Semiconductor whose number of free
electrons is equal to the number of
holes
• Example is pre germanium that was
discovered in 1886 and silicon
discovered in 1823
• Intrinsic Ge has only 1/1000 the
resistance of Si but Si allows less
leakage current
• At absolute temperature it is insulator
• At room temperature still insulator
• Net charge is neutral
VACUUM & SEMICON

Extrinsic • Not in the natural form because it is

Semiconductor the result of doping
• DOPING is the addition of impurity
atoms to alter the electrical
characteristics of the semiconductor
• Typically the addition of impurity has
a ratio of 1 impurity atom to 1x108
intrinsic atoms
• The difference is that an intrinsic
semiconductor has only covalent
bonds for all the atoms but extrinsic
semiconductor has free charges as a
result of doping
VACUUM & SEMICON

• Addition of Donor impurity

N-type Doping elements (with 5 valence
electrons or pentavalent
atoms) to form N-type
semiconductor
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Doping Agents – N TYPE

1. Phosphorus
●

2. Arsenic
●

3. Antimony
●

4. Bismuth
●
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N TYPE SEMICONDUCTOR

Majority Carriers – Electrons

Minority Carriers - Holes
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• Addition of Acceptor
P-type Doping impurity elements (with 3
valence electrons or
trivalent atoms) to form P-
type semiconductor
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Doping Agents – P TYPE

1. Boron
●

2. Aluminum
●

3. Gallium
●

4. Indium
●
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P TYPE SEMICONDUCTOR

Majority Carriers – Holes

Minority Carriers - Electrons
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FREE ELECTRONS
• Are formed when the
electron in the outermost
shell of an atom gains
sufficient energy from the
surrounding media and
breaks away from the parent
atom.
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• The merging of a free

RECOMBINATION moving and spatially
separated electrons and
holes , stopping their
movement and current
carrying capability.

• The amount of time

LIFETIME between the creation and
disappearance of free
electrons.
VACUUM & SEMICON

REVIEW QUESTIONS

PREPARED BY: VILLANUEVA, CARMELO R.

VACUUM & SEMICON

1. What is the smallest element of a matter?

a. neutron
b. electrons
c. protons
d. atom
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2. The definite discrete amount of anergy

required to move an electron from a lower
shell to a higher shell

a. quanta
b. Negative energy
c. quantum
d. Positive energy
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3. What will happen to an atom if an electron

is either taken out or taken into the same
atom?

a. Becomes negative ion

b. Becomes an ion
c. Becomes positive ion
d. Nothing will happen
VACUUM & SEMICON

4. When an atom gains additional ______, it

results to a negative ion

a. atom
b. neutron
c. electron
d. proton
VACUUM & SEMICON

5. Amount of additional energy required for

electronic emission of metals

a. electronvolt
b. Work function
c. Band gap
d. MeV
VACUUM & SEMICON

6. Emission of electrons from a material by

application of a very high voltage

a. Secondary emission
b. Thermionic emission
c. High field emission
d. Photoelectric emission
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7. Another name of vacuum tube diode

a. Fleming valve
b. audion
c. thyratron
d. detector
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8. How many electrodes does a pentode

have?

a. four
b. two
c. three
d. five
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9. What is the gain of a vacuum tube having

the following parameters; amplification
factor is 80, external plate-load resistance
of 30,000 ohms and the tubes internal
plate resistance is 10,000 ohms?

a. 60
b. 20
c. 30
d. 40
VACUUM & SEMICON

10. Triodes are usually rated by their

a. µ
b. gm
c. rp
d. Voltage gain
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11. Which terminal of the tetrode is nearest to

its anode?

a. Screen grid
b. cathode
c. Suppressor grid
d. Control grid
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12. Which of the VT devices is secondary

emission a major problem?

a. triode
b. pentode
c. tetrode
d. hexode
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13. The _____ grid in an electron tube is

where the input signal is usually applied

a. screen
b. control
c. Bias
d. suppression
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14. A heptode tube has how many grids?

a. 7
b. 1
c. 5
d. 3
VACUUM & SEMICON

15. ______ is a gaseous tube which uses a

pool of liquid mercury as its cathode

a. thyratron
b. phanatron
c. klystron
d. ignitron
VACUUM & SEMICON

16. Thyratrons in industrial electronics refer

to _______

a. A gas-filled diode
b. A vacuum tube
c. A gas-filled triode
d. An electron triode
VACUUM & SEMICON

17. _____ is a low frequency oscillation

which sometimes occurs under fault
condition in electron tube circuits

a. Ping pong
b. jitter
c. glitch
d. Motor boating
VACUUM & SEMICON

18. _____ are electrons at the outer shell

a. Valence electrons
b. Inside the shell electrons
c. Outside shell electrons
d. Conductor electrons
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19. A good material conductor should have

____ valence electrons

a. 21
b. 10
c. 1
d. 3.5
VACUUM & SEMICON

20. The difference in energy between the

valence and conduction bands of a
semiconductor is called

a. Band gap
b. Extrinsic photo effect
c. conductivity
d. Energy density
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21. What elements posses four valence

electrons?

a. insulators
b. Semi-insulators
c. semiconductors
d. conductors
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22. What two elements wisely used in

semiconductor devices that exhibit both
metallic and non-metallic characteristics?

a. Galena and Germanium

b. Silicon and Gold
c. Galena and Bismuth
d. Silicon and Germanium
VACUUM & SEMICON

23. This happens when a free electrons

returns to the valence shell

a. hole
b. ionization
c. recombination
d. lifetime
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24. _____ has a unit of electronvolt (eV)

a. current
b. Charge
c. Energy
d. Potential difference
VACUUM & SEMICON

25. The name of a pure semiconductor

material that has an equal number of
electrons and holes

a. N-type
b. Pure type
c. intrinsic
d. P-type
VACUUM & SEMICON

26. What type of material is formed when

trivalent material is doped with silicon or
germanium?

a. N type
b. N & P type
c. PN type
d. P type
VACUUM & SEMICON

27. Which is the majority carrier in an N-type

semiconductor?

a. electron
b. Positive ion
c. Negative ion
d. hole