PHT.301 Physics of Semiconductor Devices

Introduction

The first lecture starts with a brief overview of semiconductors, transistors, and the electronics industry. Then we will discuss some properties of electrons. Usually we think of electrons as little particles but in a metal or a semiconductor, it is more appropriate to think of an electron as a wave. The quantum properties of electrons in solids will be described. This is important for understanding the difference between metals and insulators.

Reading: Singh sections 1.1 - 1.5 or Thuselt 1.1 and 1.3.

For the exam
• You need to know that everything moves like a wave and exchanges energy and momentum like a particle. The correspondence between the wave nature and the particle nature of something is given by the Einstein relation, E = hf, and the de Broglie relation, p = h/λ.
• You should be able to define the density of states.
• You must know what the Fermi function is and how to calculate whether an electron state is occupied.

Resources:
• Some facts about silicon.
• Turning Potential into Reality: The Invention of the Integrated Circuit, Jack Kilby, Nobel Prize in Physics 2000 (real player), (pdf).