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3.15 Transistors C.A. Ross, Department of Materials Science and Engineering

This document summarizes several types of transistors: 1. Bipolar junction transistors (BJT) have three terminals (emitter, base, collector) and use minority carrier injection to control a large current between the collector and emitter with a small base current. 2. Junction field effect transistors (JFET) use a reverse voltage on the gate to control the width of a channel and thereby modulate the current between source and drain. 3. Metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFET) accumulate, deplete, or invert the channel under the gate oxide using the gate voltage to control current flow between source and drain.

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Maciel Gomes Dos Santos
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32 views4 pages

3.15 Transistors C.A. Ross, Department of Materials Science and Engineering

This document summarizes several types of transistors: 1. Bipolar junction transistors (BJT) have three terminals (emitter, base, collector) and use minority carrier injection to control a large current between the collector and emitter with a small base current. 2. Junction field effect transistors (JFET) use a reverse voltage on the gate to control the width of a channel and thereby modulate the current between source and drain. 3. Metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFET) accumulate, deplete, or invert the channel under the gate oxide using the gate voltage to control current flow between source and drain.

Uploaded by

Maciel Gomes Dos Santos
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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3.

15

Transistors

C.A. Ross, Department of Materials Science and Engineering

Reference: Pierret, chapter 10, 15.1-2, 16.1-2 and 17.1.

Transistors are three-terminal devices that use a small voltage (or current)

applied to one contact to modulate (i.e. control) a large voltage (or current)

between the other two contacts.

An analogy is the vacuum tube from the 1900s. A small voltage applied to

the ‘grid’ modulates a large current between the anode and cathode.

The bipolar junction transistor


The BJT (1947) is a minority carrier device

Emitter p+ n p Collector

Base
Four modes (forward active, reverse active, saturation, cutoff)

Forward active operation (pnp transistor)


The emitter E emits minority carriers into the base B: EB is forward biased
Holes survive their journey through the base
The collector C collects minority carriers from the base B: BC is reverse
biased.
A small voltage (or current) at B has a large effect on the current IE
IB << IE ~ IC

w
quasi-EF

p+ n p

E B C
holes injected holes collected

Handout 4 1
Forward current IE

At the edge of the depletion region at the left of the base,

p = (ni2/ND,B) exp(eVEB/kT)
At the right of the base, p = 0
Current across base IE = (eDp/w) (ni2/ND,B) exp(eVEB/kT)

Base current IB
The base current << collector current, so most current goes straight through
from E to C.
Current gain α = IC /IE ~ 1, β = IC /IB ~ 100 - 1000
IB = In (electrons going from B to E in forward bias)
+ InC (electrons going from C to B in reverse bias -small)
+ eRB (recombination in base -small)
The gain β = IC /IB ~ IE /IB = NA,E / ND,B is determined by doping.

‘Common base’ circuit: by setting VEB and IE we control VCB and IC


‘Common emitter’ circuit: by setting VEB and IB we control VEC and IC
Digital logic: make the transistor act like a switch by running between
saturation and cutoff.

Junction Field Effect Transistor


Apply a reverse voltage to gate G. This makes the depletion regions grow,
alters the n-channel width and therefore alters its resistance, which changes
the source-drain voltage (for constant current). This is a voltage amplifier
and also a majority carrier device.

p+
S n D G

p+

For VG = 0 it is a linear resistor. However, applying VSD causes pinch-off


(i.e. the depletion regions touch) and no more current ISD can flow.

Applying a negative VG makes pinchoff occur earlier.

Beyond pinchoff, a small change in VG causes a large change in VSD.

For depletion width d, channel length t, and initial channel width t,

Handout 4 2
at pinchoff, VSD, sat = (eNDt2/8εoεr) - (Vo + VG)

MOS devices (metal – oxide – semiconductor)


Ideal MOS bandstructure: where φ = χ s + (Ec - Ef), the Fermi level is flat
without any band bending
vacuum level Eo
φ χs

Ec
Ef
Ev

M O S (p-type)
Negative voltage to the gate (i.e. to the metal) causes charge to accumulate
(acts as a capacitor)
Small positive voltage to the gate causes charge to be depleted
Large positive voltage to the gate causes inversion: once all the mobile
carriers are depleted, carriers of the opposite sign are attracted to the region
of the semiconductor next to the oxide. This creates a channel of opposite
type.

MOSFET G

S oxide D
n+ n+

n-channel
p-type substrate depletion region

Source and substrate are grounded. Applying a large positive VG creates an

n-channel which conducts current between S and D.

If VD = 0, channel has uniform width.

If VD > 0, channel is thinner towards the D and may pinch-off; also the

depletion width is larger.

At pinch-off, the current ISD cannot increase any more.

Example application: a DRAM (dynamic random access memory) stores one

bit in a cell consisting of a MOSFET plus a MOS-capacitor. Opening the

channel of the MOSFET (by applying VG) allows the capacitor to be charged

to represent ‘1’ or uncharged for ‘0’.

Handout 4 3
Handout 4 4

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