All Questions
14
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Can a DC voltage excite a pure semiconductor (or insulator) from the valence band to the conduction band?
I have a question I am sticking around and can't find a satisfying answer. Say I have an intrinsic semidonductor at zero Kelvin (no electrons in conduction band). I apply a DC voltage across it. Can ...
- 21
0
votes
1
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56
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Current Amplification in Common Base Transistor
How does a common base transistor amplify current if a small part of its emitter current gets divided into base current and the rest goes to collector current? If the input signal is applied to the ...
2
votes
1
answer
78
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Why don’t illuminated series connected (photo-)diodes bias each other?
When you connect, let's say, three photodiodes or solar cells, with a load, and you measure the voltage across the middle photodiode. Will the voltage change if
the adjacent cells are in the dark
if ...
1
vote
1
answer
885
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Why are we even interested in solar cells under bias voltage?
I couldn't find any answer on this super basic question.
Some people on the internet say that you would not put a solar cell in an array under bias, others say that they bias themselves, but I don't ...
0
votes
1
answer
265
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Why do diodes block current in a single direction?
It seems like all the explanations for diode mechanics simply state that if N-type semiconductor is connected to V+ of the battery, the depletion region grows so current cannot pass.
It seems, ...
- 815
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1
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237
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Electric fields and electric potentials in semiconductors
The zener diode is heavilier doped than a normal diode , that is why its depletion region is smaller than the delpetion region of a normal diode and that is why the electric field is very strong.Zener ...
- 165
0
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0
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76
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Zener diode electric field working principle
Well I recently saw a video from khan academy about zener diodes.This video was suggested by another member of Stack Exchange Physics who I thank him very much . But I didnt understand some things:...
- 165
0
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1
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76
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At what pressure do semiconductors break down? [closed]
So let's say you were going to send some electronics to the bottom of the ocean, 3-5km down. This would be about $5km*1000kg=5Mkgf/m^{2}$. So at what pressure do circuit boards, transistors, etc stop ...
- 11
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74
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Point resistance
The resistance of a given object is expressed through:
$$R=\rho\frac{l}{A}$$
I'm wondering if there is any quantity like resistance at a specific point. For example, $R$ for a copper wire with l=...
- 3
1
vote
2
answers
952
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Does an electron physically flow? [duplicate]
In a DC current in a conductive wire, is it more accurate to think of one electron wiggling its way through a sea of electrons... or to think of one electron bumping into another, which bumps into ...
- 445
1
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3
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Are thermistors and filament bulbs ohmic?
Conductors are ohmic if they have a constant resistance given that the physical conditions, such as temperature, are constant.
A filament bulb and thermistor are considered to be non-ohmic because ...
- 1,307
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2
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3k
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Why does current have to flow in the same direction?
If current is just the movement of charged particles, why do the all have to move in the same direction?
For example, if you reverse-bias a diode (connect the positive terminal to the n-type side ...
- 165
1
vote
1
answer
1k
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Question on Shockley's equation for FETs
I'm currently studying FETs (Field Effect Transistors) in Navy school. What I know so far is that in FETs, $V_{gs}$ is reversed biased, creating a depletion zone. What this means in plain English is ...
- 121
2
votes
1
answer
3k
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How is contact resistivity defined for a Schottky contact, or the Schottky barrier height for an ohmic contact?
Based on the transfer length method (TLM), one can accurately calculate the contact resistivity for an ohmic contact, by evaluating the absolute resistance measured through the test structure and ...
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