Properties of Semiconductors
- There are two charge carriers present in the semiconductors, i.e. an electron and a hole.
- The hole is considered the imaginary charge carrier in the semiconductor.
- Electrons and holes both have the same magnitude of charge but opposite signs.
- The mobility of a hole is less than the mobility of an electron.
- The net current of the semiconductor is due to the movement of electrons and holes, i.e Itotal = Ie + Ih
- The net conductivity of a semiconductor is also due to both charge carriers, i.e σtotal = σe + σh
Extrinsic Semiconductor
As we all know, based on conductivity, we divide the material into three categories: Conductor, Semiconductor, and Insulator. In which the conductivity of the conductor is highest, insulators have the lowest conductivity, and semiconductors have intermediate conductivity. The reason behind this is the number of free electrons present in the crystal of each material. If we talk about the conductivity of semiconductors, two different types of semiconductors are classified based on the number of electrons and holes present in the crystal: Intrinsic and Extrinsic semiconductors. In this article, we will discuss these semiconductors, especially extrinsic semiconductors, their properties, formation, needs, and various applications.
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