ACTIVE ELECTRONIC COMPONENTS

Semiconductor
• Materials that permit flow of electrons
are called conductors (e.g., gold, silver,
copper, etc.).
• Materials that block flow of electrons are
called insulators (e.g., rubber, glass, Teflon,
mica, etc.).
• Materials whose conductivity falls
between those of conductors and
insulators are called semiconductors.
• Semiconductors are “part-time”
conductors whose conductivity can be
controlled.
• Atoms in a pure silicon wafer contains four electrons in outer orbit (called valence
electrons). – Germanium is another semiconductor material with four valence electrons. •
In the crystalline lattice structure of Si, the valence electrons of every Si atom are locked up
in covalent bonds with the valence electrons of four neighboring Si atoms. – In pure form, Si
wafer does not contain any free charge carriers. – An applied voltage across pure Si wafer
does not yield electron flow through the wafer. – A pure Si wafer is said to act as an
insulator. • In order to make useful semiconductor devices, materials such as phosphorus
(P) and boron (B) are added to Si to change Si’s conductivity.
 The P-N junction diode

is also known as rectifier diodes. These diodes are used for the rectification
process and are made up of semiconductor material. The P-N junction diode
includes two layers of semiconductors. One layer of the semiconductor material is
doped with P-type material and the other layer with N-type material. The
combination of these both P and N-type layers form a junction known as the P-N
junction. Hence, the name P-N junction diode.
P-N junction diode allows the current to flow in the forward direction and blocks the
flow of current in the reverse direction.
What is LED diode?

A Light Emitting Diode (LED) is a semiconductor device, which can emit light
when an electric current passes through it. To do this, holes from p-type
semiconductors recombine with electrons from n-type semiconductors to produce
light
 Diode
A diode is a semiconductor switch made from a combination of two layers of P-type
and N-type material. There is only one PN junction in a diode having only two
terminals i.e. Anode and Cathode.

A diode is a unidirectional switch that allows current in only one direction

and blocks it in the reverse direction. Therefore it is mostly used in the
rectification of AC into DC. However, it offers uncontrolled rectification i.e.
the power rectified cannot be controlled.
Structure of diodes
As show in fig a diode is composed of a combination of P type
semiconductors and N type semi conductors. It is indicated in
electrical circuit as fig. The terminal on P type side is called an
anode, and the terminal on P side is called cathode. The junction
surface becomes electrically neutralized as the electron hole in
the P type and a free electron in the N type pull against each
other. This is called a depletion layer.
 A diode

is a unidirectional switch that allows current in only one

direction and blocks it in the reverse direction. Therefore it is
mostly used in the rectification of AC into DC. However, it
offers uncontrolled rectification i.e. the power rectified cannot
be controlled.
A diode has many different types and each type is used for its
special purpose. Some of these types are. Light-emitting
diode (LED), Photodiode, Zener diode, Avalanche diode,
Laser Diode, PIN Diode.
A diode has a wide range of applications used in electronics.
Some of these applications are rectification, Voltage clipping
and Clamping, Circuit Protection, Voltage regulation and
multiplication, light source, etc.
Zener Diode
It is the most useful type of diode as it can provide a stable reference voltage. These
are operated in reverse bias and break down on the arrival of a certain voltage. If
current passing through the resistor is limited, a stable voltage is generated. Zener
diodes are widely used in power supplies to provide a reference voltage.

Schottky Diode
It has a lower forward voltage than other silicon PN junction diodes. The drop will be
seen where there is low current and at that stage, voltage ranges between 0.15 and
0.4 volts. These are constructed differently in order to obtain that
performance. Schottky diodes are highly used in rectifier applications.

Photodiode
A photo-diode can identify even a small amount of current flow resulting from the light.
These are very helpful in the detection of the light. This is a reverse bias diode and
used in solar cells and photometers. They are even used to generate electricity.
Light Emitting Diode (LED)
When an electric current between the electrodes passes through this diode, light is
produced. In other words, light is generated when a sufficient amount of forwarding
current passes through it. In many diodes, this light generated is not visible as there
are frequency levels that do not allow visibility. LEDs are available in different
colours. There are tricolour LEDs that can emit three colours at a time. Light colour
depends on the energy gap of the semiconductor used.
 Zener Diode
Definition: A heavily doped semiconductor diode which is designed to operate in reverse
direction is known as the Zener diode. In other words, the diode which is specially designed
for optimising the breakdown region is known as the Zener diode.
The circuit diagram of the Zener diode is shown in the figure below. The Zener diode is
employed in reverse biasing. The reverse biasing means the n-type material of the diode is
connected to the positive terminal of the supply and the P-type material is connected to
the negative terminal of the supply. The depletion region of the diode is very thin because
it is made of the heavily doped semiconductor material.
When the reverse bias applies
across the diode and the supply
voltage is equal to the
Zener voltage then it starts
conducting in the reverse bias
direction. The Zener voltage is
the voltage at which the
depletion region
completely vanish.
In forward bias Zener works as an ordinary
diode but when it is operated in reverse bias its
shows the specialty of voltage regulation, it must
be noted that in fig given below.
The reverse voltages are increasing but reverse
current extremely small (up to Vz) and remains
constant till reverse voltages are reached
at knee voltages (the voltages at which
current rapidly increasing Is known as
knee voltages).
After the knee voltages reverse current is
rapidly increasing its known as Zener
current (the Zener current is the effect of
Zener resistance or we can say Zener impedance
which decreased when Zener current rapidly
increased, above the knee Zener breakdown
voltages are essentially constant).
Applications of Zener Diode
The Zener diode is mostly used in the commercial and industrial applications. The following
are the main application of the Zener diode.
•With the applications of as voltage regulator Zener diode can be used to limit ac
signal to the desired level.
•In below figure 3 main methods of Zener diode as limiter is shown.
As Voltage Stabilizer – The Zener
diode is used for regulating the
voltage. It provides the constant
voltage from the fluctuating
voltage source to the load. The
Zener diode is connected in
parallel across the load and
maintain the constant voltage
VZ and hence stabilises the
voltage.
Zener Regulation From No Load to Full
Load
•If open the output terminals of Zener regulator
circuitry or RL= ∞ the value of load current will
be zero all the current will flow through diode it
is no load condition of a diode.
•If we attach resistance at the load terminals
then the complete current of circuitry will be
divided between Zener diode and load
resistance RL.
•The total current from the resistance R will be
constant until that Zener is regulating the
voltage.
•With the decrement in load resistance RL, the
load current IL upsurges and Zener current
IZ will reduce.
•The Zener diode continue the voltage
How to use Zener Diode For Meter
Protection
•Zener diode is used in multimeter to
provide protection to a meter in case
of overloading.
•To provide protection to meter it
connected in parallel with the diode
as shown below.
•During overload condition, current
increases and most of the current
flows through the diode that protects
the meter from damage.
Zener diode regulator circuit, Zener voltage = 12.6V).

Zener Diode Operation Please take note of the Zener diode’s orientation in the
above circuit: the diode is reverse-biased, and intentionally so. If we had
oriented the diode in the “normal” way, so as to be forward-biased, it would
only drop 0.7 volts, just like a regular rectifying diode. If we want to exploit this
diode’s reverse breakdown properties, we must operate it in its reverse-bias
mode. So long as the power supply voltage remains above the Zener voltage
(12.6 volts, in this example), the voltage dropped across the Zener diode will
remain at approximately 12.6 volts.
What is a bipolar and unipolar devices give examples?

A bipolar junction transistor (BJT) is a type of transistor that uses both electrons and
electron holes as charge carriers. In contrast,
A unipolar transistor, such as a field-effect transistor(FET), uses only one kind of charge
carrier
What is the Schottky diode and how it
works?
The schottky diode is a type of metal
– semiconductor junction diode,
which is also known as hot-carrier
diode, low voltage diode or schottky
barrier diode. The schottky diode is
formed by the junction of a
semiconductor with a metal. Schottky
diode offers fast switching action and
has a low forward voltage drop
When aluminum or platinum metal is joined
with N-type semiconductor, a junction is
formed between the metal and N-type
semiconductor. This junction is known as a
metal-semiconductor junction or M-S
junction. A metal-semiconductor junction
formed between a metal and n-type
semiconductor creates a barrier or
depletion layer known as a schottky barrier.
Schottky diode can switch on and off much
faster than the p-n junction diode. Also, the
schottky diode produces less unwanted
noise than p-n junction diode. These two
characteristics of the schottky diode make it
very useful in high-speed switching power
circuits.
When sufficient voltage is applied to the schottky diode, current starts flowing in the
forward direction. Because of this current flow, a small voltage loss occurs across
the terminals of the schottky diode. This voltage loss is known as voltage drop.
A silicon diode has a voltage drop of 0.6 to 0.7 volts, while a schottky diode has a
voltage drop of 0.2 to 0.3 volts. Voltage loss or voltage drop is the amount of voltage
wasted to turn on a diode.
In silicon diode, 0.6 to 0.7 volts is wasted to turn on the diode, whereas in schottky
diode, 0.2 to 0.3 volts is wasted to turn on the diode. Therefore, the schottky diode
consumes less voltage to turn on.
 Applications of Schottky Diode (Unipolar Diode)
Schottky diodes are used in electronics industry for many applications in diode
rectifier because of its properties. They are used for voltage clamping applications,
to prevent transistor saturation. It is used as Schottky TTL in digital devices as these
devices require fast switching. as the performance of digital computers is
determined by switching speed of diodes, Schottky diode is an important
component for digital computers.
Construction of Schottky Diode
It is made of a metal and semiconductor forming unilateral junction. Few metals like
gold, silver, molybdenum, tungsten or platinum are utilized. Usually an N type
semiconductor, which includes Gallium, is used. Silicon is used for low frequency
operation.
Schottky diode is related directly with temperature dropping. In N type
semiconductor, decrease and increase of temperature doping concentration
happens. Between the semiconductors–metal junctions, a depletion layer is formed
known as Schottky barrier.
The transistor is a three terminals semiconductor device used for switching and
amplification of a signal. It is a three-layered semiconductor device made of 3
semiconductor layers. As the layers used are different types of semiconductors i.e.
N-type and P-type. Therefore, transistors have two types i.e. PNP and NPN
transistors. The type of the transistor depends on its construction and also affects
the type of majority carriers in it.
The name of Transistor is derived from the combination of two
words Transfer and Resistance = Transistor. A transistor transfers
the resistance from one end to the other. In short, a transistor has high resistance
in the input section while low resistance in the output section.
 Structure of transistors
A transistor is made by one more semiconductor layer to a diode. In short,
it has 3-layer structure. According to structure, it is possible to classify it
into two types: the PNP type and NPN type.
If a transistor is properly biased (applying a gate signal), it will start conduction of majority carriers between emitter
and collector. However, the gate signal is continuous and must not be removed during operation. A transistor does
not conduct in the absence of the gate signal.
Therefore, a transistor has 3 regions of operation i.e. Active region, cutoff region and saturated region. The active
region is used for amplification while the cutoff and saturated region is used for switching.
The transistor starts conduction when the Base-Emitter junction is in forward bias and the Collector-Base junction is
in reverse bias. Therefore, it requires two voltage sources to operate.
The transistor is an active component and requires an extra power source to process the input signal. Whereas, the
diode operates only on the input signal. However, the transistor can switch ON and OFF on command.
In a unipolar device, the current is due to only
one type of carrier (i.e. electrons or holes),
while in a bipolar device current is due to both
holes and electrons. The Schottky diode or hot-
carrier diode is a junction of n-type semiconductor
and metal, in it, electrons are sole carriers.

FETs are also known as unipolar transistors

since they involve single-carrier-type
operation. That is, FETs use either
electrons (n-channel) or holes (p-channel)
as charge carriers in their operation, but not
both. Many different types of field effect
transistors exist
What is a bipolar and unipolar devices give examples?

A bipolar junction transistor (BJT) is a type of transistor that uses both electrons and
electron holes as charge carriers. In contrast,
A unipolar transistor, such as a field-effect transistor(FET), uses only one kind of charge
carrier