Chapter 3

SPECIAL PURPOSE DIODES

 CHAPTER OBJECTIVES
• Describe the characteristics of a zener diode and analyze
its operation
• Apply a zener diode in voltage regulation
• Describe the varactor diode characteristic and analyze
its operation
• Discuss the characteristics, operation, and applications
of LEDs, quantum dots, and photodiodes
• Discuss the basic characteristics of several types of
diodes
 THE ZENER DIODE

• A major application for zener diodes is as a

type of voltage regulator for providing stable
reference voltages for use in power supplies,
voltmeters, and other instruments.
 THE ZENER DIODE

• A zener diode is a silicon PN junction device that

is designed for operation in the reverse-breakdown
region.

• The breakdown voltage of a zener diode is set by

carefully controlling the doping level during
manufacture.
• Instead of a straight line representing the
cathode, the zener diode has a bent line that
reminds you of the letter Z (for zener)
when a diode reaches reverse breakdown, its voltage remains almost
constant even though the current changes drastically, and this is the
key to zener diode operation. This volt-ampere characteristic is
shown again in Figure with the normal operating region for zener
diodes shown as a shaded area.
 Zener Breakdown
Zener diodes are designed to operate in reverse
breakdown. Two types of reverse breakdown in a zener
diode are avalanche and zener.

The avalanche effect, occurs in both rectifier and zener diodes

at a sufficiently high reverse voltage.
• Zener breakdown occurs in a zener diode at low
reverse voltages.
• A zener diode is heavily doped to reduce the
breakdown voltage.
• This causes a very thin depletion region.
• As a result, an intense electric field exists within
the depletion region.
• Near the zener breakdown voltage ( VZ), the field is
in-tense enough to pull electrons from their valence
bands and create current.
• Zener diodes with breakdown voltages of less than
approximately 5V operate predominately in zener
breakdown.
• Those with breakdown voltages greater than
approximately 5V operate predominately in
avalanche breakdown.
• Both types, however, are called zener diodes.
Zener are commercially available with breakdown
voltages from less than 1 V to more than 250 V
with specified tolerances from 1% to 20%.
 Breakdown Characteristics
• As the reverse voltage (VR) is increased, the reverse current
( IR) remains extremely small up to the “knee” of the curve.

• The reverse current is also called the zener current, IZ At

this point, the breakdown effect begins; the internal zener
resistance, also called zener impedance (ZZ), begins to
decrease as the reverse current increases rapidly.

• From the bottom of the knee, the zener breakdown voltage

(VZ) remains essentially constant although it increases
slightly as the zener current, IZ increases.
 Zener Regulation
• The ability to keep the reverse voltage across its terminals
essentially constant is the key feature of the zener diode.

• A zener diode operating in breakdown acts as a voltage regulator

because it maintains a nearly constant voltage across its terminals
over a specified range of reverse-current values.

• A minimum value of reverse current, IZK , must be maintained in

order to keep the diode in breakdown for voltage regulation.
 Zener Equivalent Circuits
Figure shows the ideal model (first approximation) of a zener diode
in reverse break-down and its ideal characteristic curve. It has a
constant voltage drop equal to the nominal zener voltage. This
constant voltage drop across the zener diode produced by reverse
breakdown is represented by a dc voltage symbol even though the
zener diode does not produce a voltage.
Figure represents the practical model (second approximation) of a
zener diode, where the zener impedance (resistance), ZZ , is
included. Since the actual voltage curve is not ideally vertical, a
change in zener current produces a small change in zener voltage
as illustrated in Figure. By Ohm’s law, the ratio of is the impedance,
as expressed in the following equation:
 ZENER DIODE APPLICATIONS

• Zener Regulation with a Variable Input

Voltage

• Zener Regulation with a Variable Load

• Zener Limiter
Zener Regulation with a Variable Input Voltage

• Zener diode regulators can provide a reasonably constant

dc level at the output, but they are not particularly
efficient. For this reason, they are limited to applications
that require only low current to the load.
• As the input voltage varies (within limits), the zener diode
maintains a nearly constant output voltage across its
terminals.
 Zener Regulation with a Variable Load

From No Load to Full Load

• When the output terminals of the zener regulator are
open the load current is zero and all of the current is
through the zener; this is a no-load condition.

• When a load resistor is connected, part of the total

current is through the zener and part through the total
current through ‘R’ remains essentially constant as long
as the zener is regulating.
 • From No Load to Full Load

• As ‘R’ is decreased, the load current increases and zener

current decreases.

• The zener diode continues to regulate the voltage until

reaches its minimum value, At this point the load current is
maximum, and a full-load condition exists.
 Zener Limiter

In addition to voltage regulation applications, zener

diodes can be used in AC applications to limit
voltage swings to desired levels.
 THE VARACTOR DIODE

• A tuning diode, also known as a varactor diode, variable

capacitance diode, varicap diode or variable reactance
diode is a diode that has a variable capacitance which is a
function of the voltage that is impressed on its terminals.

• The junction capacitance of diodes varies with the amount

of reverse bias. Varactor diodes are specially designed to
take advantage of this characteristic and are used as
voltage-controlled capacitors rather than traditional diodes.
These devices are commonly used in communication
systems and radio frequency devices.
A varactor is a diode that always operates in reverse bias and
is doped to maximize the inherent capacitance of the depletion
region. The depletion region acts as a capacitor di-electric
because of its nonconductive characteristic. The p and n
regions are conductive and act as the capacitor plates.
 The Light-Emitting Diode (LED)

The light-emitting diode is a light emitter. And it is a

optical diode.

The symbol for an LED is

 Basic operation of LED
• When the device is forward-biased, electrons cross the pn junction
from the n-type material and recombine with holes in the p -type
material.
• The free electrons are in the conduction band and at a higher energy
than the holes in the valence band. The difference in energy between
the electrons and the holes corresponds to the energy of visible light.
• When recombination takes place, the recombining electrons release
energy in the form of photons.
• The emitted light tends to be monochromatic (one color) that
depends on the band gap (and other factors).
• A large exposed surface area on one layer of the semi conductive
material permits the photons to be emitted as visible light. This
process, called electroluminescence
 LED Semiconductor Materials
The semiconductor gallium arsenide (GaAs) was used in
early LEDs and emits IR radiation, which is invisible. The
first visible red LEDs were produced using gallium arsenide
phosphide (GaAsP) on a GaAs substrate. The efficiency was
increased using a gallium phosphide (GaP) substrate,
resulting in brighter red LEDs and also allowing orange
LEDs.
Later, GaP was used as the light-emitter to achieve pale green
light. By using a red and a green chip, LEDs were able to
produce yellow light. The first super-bright red, yellow, and
green LEDs were produced using gallium aluminum arsenide
phosphide (GaAlAsP). By the early 1990s ultrabright LEDs
using indium gallium aluminum phosphide (InGaAlP) were
available in red, orange, yellow, and green.
 LED Applications
• Standard LEDs are used for indicator lamps and
readout displays on a wide variety of instruments,
ranging from consumer appliances to scientific
apparatus.

• A common type of display device using LEDs is the

seven-segment display.
 LED Applications
• One common application of an infrared LED is in
remote control units for TV, DVD, gate openers,
etc.
• The IR LED sends out a beam of invisible light
that is sensed by the receiver in your TV.
 The Photodiode
• The photodiode is a device that operates in
reverse bias.
• The photodiode has a small transparent
window that allows light to strike the pn
junction.
The Photodiode
 The Laser Diode
• The term laser stands for light amplification by
stimulated emission of radiation.
• Laser light is monochromatic, which means that
it consists of a single color and not a mixture of
colors.
• Laser light is also called coherent light, a single
wavelength, as compared to incoherent light, which
consists of a wide band of wavelengths.
• The laser diode normally emits coherent light, whereas
the LED emits incoherent light.
• The symbol for laser diode is
The basic operation of Laser diode
• The laser diode is forward-biased by an external voltage
source.
• As electrons move through the junction, recombination occurs
just as in an ordinary diode.
• As electrons fall into holes to recombine, photons are released.
• A released photon can strike an atom, causing another photon
to be released.
• As the forward current is increased, more electrons enter the
depletion region and cause more photons to be emitted.
• Eventually some of the photons that are randomly drifting
within the depletion region strike the reflected surfaces
perpendicularly.
• This back-and-forth movement of photons increases as
the generation of photons “snow-balls” until a very
intense beam of laser light is formed by the photons that
pass through the partially reflective end of the pn
junction.

• Each photon produced in this process is identical to the

other photons in energy level, phase relationship, and
frequency. So a single wavelength of intense light
emerges from the laser diode
 The Schottky Diode
• Schottky diodes are high-current diodes used primarily
in high-frequency and fast-switching applications.
• They are also known as hot-carrier diodes.
• The term hot-carrier is derived from the higher energy
level of electrons in the n region compared to those in
the metal region. A Schottky diode symbol is
A Schottky diode is formed by joining a doped
semiconductor region (usually n-type) with a metal such as
gold, silver, or platinum. Rather than a pn junction, there is
a metal-to-semiconductor junction,
 Basic Operation Of Schottky Diode

• The Schottky diode operates only with majority carriers.

• There are no minority carriers and thus no reverse leakage
current as in other types of diodes.
• The metal region is heavily occupied with conduction-band
electrons, and the n -type semiconductor region is lightly
doped.
• When forward-biased, the higher energy electrons in the n
region are injected into the metal region where they give up
their excess energy very rapidly.
• Since there are no minority carriers.
 The PIN Diode

• The PiN diode consists of heavily doped p and n regions

separated by an intrinsic (i) region.

• When reverse-biased, the pin diode acts like a nearly

constant capacitance.

• When forward-biased, it acts like a current-controlled

variable resistance
 Lesson Review
• Define zener break down.
• Difference between LED and Photo diode.
• Difference between Schottky diode and
Varactor diode.
• What is PiN diode.
• LASER term stands for what? And write
characteristics of LASER diode.