Experiment no.

:
Resistivity by four probe

AIM

To determine the resistivity of semiconductors by Four probe Method.

APPARATUS

Probe arrangement, sample , oven 0-200°C, constant current generator , oven power supply
and digital panel meter(measuring voltage and current).
Four probe apparatus is one of the standard and most widely used apparatus for the
measurement of resistivity of semiconductors.
This method is employed when the sample is in the form of a thin wafer, such as a thin
semiconductor material deposited on a substrate. The sample is millimeter in size and having
a thickness w. It consists of four probe arranged linearly in a straight line at equal distance S
from each other. A constant current is passed through the two probes and the potential drop V
across the middle two probes is measured. An oven is provided with a heater to heat the
sample so that behavior of the sample is studied with increase in temperature.

DIAGRAM

FORMULA:
THEORY

At a constant temperature, the resistance, R of a conductor is proportional to its length L and

inversely proportional to its area of cross section A.

(1)
Where ρ is the resistivity of the conductor and its unit is ohmmeter.
A semiconductor has electrical conductivity intermediate in magnitude between that of a
conductor and insulator. Semiconductor differs from metals in their characteristic property of
decreasing electrical resistivity with increasing temperature.
According to band theory, the energy levels of semiconductors can be grouped into two
bands, valence band and the conduction band. In the presence of an external electric field it is
electrons in the valence band that can move freely, thereby responsible for the electrical
conductivity of semiconductors. In case of intrinsic semiconductors, the Fermi level lies in
between the conduction band minimum and valence band maximum. Since conduction band
lies above the Fermi level at 0K, when no thermal excitations are available, the conduction
band remains unoccupied. So conduction is not possible at 0K, and resistance is infinite. As
temperature increases, the occupancy of conduction band goes up, thereby resulting in
decrease of electrical resistivity of semiconductor.
Resistivity of semiconductor by four probe method
1. The resistivity of material is uniform in the area of measurement.
2. If there is a minority carrier injection into the semiconductor by the current- carrying
electrodes most of the carriers recombine near electrodes so that their effect on conductivity
is negligible.
3. The surface on which the probes rest is flat with no surface leakage.
4. The four probes used for resistivity measurement contact surface at points that lie in a
straight line.
5. The diameter of the contact between metallic probes and the semiconductor should be
small compared to the distance between the probes.
6. The boundary between the current carrying electrodes and the bulk material is
hemispherical and small in diameter.
7. The surface of semiconductor material may be either conducting and non-conducting. A
conducting boundary is one on which material of much lower resistivity than semiconductor
has been plated. A non-conducting boundary is produced when the surface of the
semiconductor is in contact with insulator. Fig: 2 show the resistivity probes on a die of
material. If the side boundaries are adequately far from the probes, the die may be considered
to be identical to a slice. For this case of a slice of thickness w and the resistivity is computed
as

The function, f(w/S)= 5.89 is a divisor for computing resistivity which depends on the value
ofwand s. We assume that the size of the metal tip is infinitesimal and sample thickness is
greater than the distance between the probes,
 (3)

Where,
V – the potential difference between inner probes in volts.
I – Current through the outer pair of probes in ampere.
S – Spacing between the probes in meter.
Temperature dependence of resistivity of semiconductor

Total electrical conductivity of a semiconductor is the sum of the conductivities of the

valence band and conduction band carriers. Resistivity is the reciprocal of conductivity and
its temperature dependence is given by

(4)
Where,
Eg – band gap of the material
T – Temperature in Kelvin
K – Boltzmann constant,
K – 8.6x10-5 eV/K
The resistivity of a semiconductor rises exponentially on decreasing the temperature.

Applications
1. Remote sensing areas
2. Resistance thermometers
3. Induction hardening process
4. Accurate geometry factor estimation
5. Characterization of fuel cells bipolar plates

Procedure:

In real lab, four probes are placed on the sample as shown in Fig:1. Connections are made
as shown in the simulator. A constant current is passed through the outer probes by
connecting it to the constant current source of the set up. The current is set to 8mA. The
voltage developed across the middle two probes is measured using a digital milli-voltmeter.
The trial is repeated by placing the four probe arrangement inside the oven. The oven is
connected to the heater supply of the set up. For different temperatures, upto 150 0C, the
voltage developed is noted and tabulated.
The distance between the probes(S) and the thickness of the crystal (W) are measured. The
values of (W/S) are calculated and the value of the function f(W/S) ia taken from the standard
table. Using equation (2) and (3), calculate ρ for various temperatures.

Observations

Temperature (T) = ……… 0C

Spacing between the probes (s) =2mm andf(w/S)= 5.89

Observationtable :

Sr. no. Voltage (V) in mV Current (I) in mA V/I

Mean (V/I) =

Calculations:

Resistivity of given sample is calculated by using the equation given below.

.

Result

The resistivity of the given semiconductor by Four probe Method = ...................................O

hm cm.