©syarifah norfaezah 06/07 chapter 1: introduction semiconductor devices

©Syarifah Norfaezah 06/07

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTIONCHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

Semiconductor Devices


What is Semiconductors?What is Semiconductors?

Semiconductors are materials which have a conductivity between conductors (generally metals) and nonconductors or insulators (such as most ceramics).

Semiconductors can be pure elements, such as silicon or germanium, or compounds such as

gallium arsenide or cadmium selenide Ability to conduct electrical current, and they can be regulated in the amount of their conductivity.

Si is most widely used – easily obtained.

Early developments semiconductor – 1600 to 1800.


1947 – First Transistor, AT & T Bells Labs.

1952 – First Single Crystal Ge.

1954 – First Single Crystal Si.

1958 – First IC Device.

1961 – First IC Product, Fairchild Camera

1971 – Intel Microprocessor

1975 – First Personal Computer.

1981 – IBM Personal Computer.

Semiconductor EraSemiconductor Era


Semiconductor DevicesSemiconductor Devices

Applied Physics, E & E Eng, Materials Science.Semiconductor Devices – foundation of electronic industry.Largest industry in the world - >> USD trillion, since 1998.Fundamental study of devices (semiconductor physics) – to understanding the advanced course in electronics.


The first electronic digital computer was built in the basement of the physics department at Iowa State University in 1939 by Physicist, Professor Dr. John Atasanoff

Tim Berners-Lee, a Physicist from CERN Particle Physics Lab, invented the World Wide Web in 1990

The underlying theory of photons which made the invention of the laser possible was first developed by Albert Einstein in 1905

1954 the first microwave laser was built by physicist Charles Townes.

The first optical laser was built in 1960 by physicist Theodore Maiman


Semiconductor Devices Semiconductor Devices (cont.)(cont.)

1980 1990 2000 2010101

103

104

105

102

USD billion

Year

semiconductorsteel

electronicsautomobile

Gross world product (GWP)


1.1 Basic Devices Building Blocks

M S/C

MS/C A S/C B

p – type S/C n – type S/C

S/C

oxide

(1) Metal – semiconductor interface (2) p – n junction

(3) Heterojunction interface (4) Metal – oxide semiconductor structure



1. Metal-semiconductor interface

- intimate contact between a metal and a semiconductor

- first semiconductor device ever studied (1874).

-used as rectifying contact.

-MESFET.

2. p-n junction

- form between p-type s/c and n-type s/c.

- key building block for most s/c devices.

-p-n junction theory – foundation of the physics of s/c.

-p-n-p bipolar transistor (1947).

-p-n-p-n called thyristor.



3. Heterojunction interface

- interface between two dissimilar s/c, i.e GaAs + AlAs heterojunction.

-the key components for high-speed and photonic devices.

4. Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor (MOS) structure

-a combination of metal-oxide interface and oxide-semiconductor interface.

- MOSFET (MOS field-effect transistor) – most important device for advanced IC.



1.2 Major Semiconductor Devices

Year Semiconductor Device Inventor(s)

1874 Metal-semiconductor contact Braun

1907 Light emitting diode (LED) Round

1947 Bipolar transistor Bardeen, Brattain, Shockley

1949 p-n junction Shockley

1954 Solar cell Chapin, Fuller, Pearson

1958 Tunnel diode Leo Esaki



Year Semiconductor Device Inventor(s)

1962 Laser Hall et al.

1965 IMPATT diode Johnston, DeLoach, Cohen

1966 MESFET Mead

1967 Nonvolatile s/c memory Kahng, Sze

1980 MODFET Mimura et al.

2001 20nm MOSFET Chau

1.2 Major Semiconductor Devices (cont.)



Semiconductor TechnologySemiconductor Technology

Year Technology Inventor(s)

1918 Czochralski crystal growth Czochralski

1925 Bridgman crystal growth Bridgman

1952 Diffusion Pfann

1959 Hybrid IC Kilby

1963 CMOS Wanlass and Sah

1967 DRAM Dennard

1969 MOCVD Manasevit and Simpson

1971 Dry Etching Irving, Lemons, and Bobos

1971 Microprocessor (4004) Hoff et al.

1993 Copper interconnect Paraszczak et al.


Semiconductor Tech. Semiconductor Tech. (cont.)(cont.)

As the complexity of the IC increased, we have move from NMOS (n-channel MOSFET) to CMOS (complementary MOSFET) technology – employs both NMOS and PMOS.

CMOS technology is the dominant technology for advanced ICs.

DRAM (dynamic random access memory) – the memory contains one MOSFET and one charge-storage capacitor. (MOSFET serve as switch to charge and discharge the capacitor).


Technology TrendsTechnology Trends

The minimum length of IC has been reduced at rate about 13% per year.Device miniaturization also reduces the energy used for each switching operation. (energy has decreased over one million times since 1959).At the beginning of the modern technology era (1950 – 1970), bipolar transistor was the technology driver.1970-1990, DRAM and the microprocessor based on MOS devices were the technology drivers (rapid growth of PC and advanced tech. systems.Since 1990, nonvolatile semiconductor memory has been the tech. driver – because of the rapid growth of portable electronic systems.


SummarySummary

Semiconductor Device field – new era of study – give a big impact to our society and the global economy (largest industry in the world – electronic industry).

Started from metal-semiconductor contact in 1874 – to the fabrication of the ultrasmall 20nm MOSFET in 2001.

Semiconductor devices: 1947 (Bipolar Transistor) 1960 (MOSFET) 1967 (invention of nonvolatile semiconductor memory).

More than 300, 000 papers have been published in semiconductor-device physics field. Grand total may reach 1 million papers in the year 2012.


Next Chapter: Chapter 2Next Chapter: Chapter 2

Energy Bands & Carrier Concentration in Thermal

Equilibrium


““Try not to become a man of Try not to become a man of success but rather to become a success but rather to become a

man of value” man of value”

Albert EinsteinUS (German-born) physicist

(1879 - 1955)


““Education is the best provision Education is the best provision for the journey to old age”for the journey to old age”

AristotleGreek critic, philosopher, physicist, &

zoologist (384 BC - 322 BC)

©syarifah norfaezah 06/07 chapter 1: introduction semiconductor devices

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