LED, Laser Diode, Photodiode

Professor M. Ummal Momeen

Basic Semiconductor Physics
 Basic Semiconductor Physics

Boltzmann's constant k B = 1.38 × 10 −23 JK -1

a) Energy level diagrams showing the excitation of an electron from the

valence band to the conduction band. The resultant free electron can
freely move under the application of electric field.
b) Equal electron & hole concentrations in an intrinsic semiconductor
created by the thermal excitation of electrons across the band gap
 n-Type Semiconductor

a) Donor level in an n-type semiconductor.

b) The ionization of donor impurities creates an increased electron
concentration distribution.
 p-Type Semiconductor

a) Acceptor level in an p-type semiconductor.

b) The ionization of acceptor impurities creates an increased hole
concentration distribution
 Intrinsic & Extrinsic Materials
• Intrinsic material: A perfect material with no impurities.
Eg
n = p = ni ∝ exp(− )
2 k BT
n & p & ni are the electron, hole & intrinsic concentrations respectively.

E g is the gap energy, T is Temperature.

• Extrinsic material: donor or acceptor type semiconductors.

pn = ni
2

• Majority carriers: electrons in n-type or holes in p-type.

• Minority carriers: holes in n-type or electrons in p-type.
• The operation of semiconductor devices is essentially
based on the injection and extraction of minority carriers.
 The pn Junction

Electron diffusion across a pn

junction creates a barrier potential
(electric field) in the depletion
region.
 Reverse-biased pn Junction

A reverse bias widens the depletion region, but allows

minority carriers to move freely with the applied field.
 Forward-biased pn Junction

Lowering the barrier potential with a forward bias allows

majority carriers to diffuse across the junction.
 Direct Band Gap Semiconductors

E-k diagram shows the relationship between the energy and momentum
of available quantum mechanical states for electrons in the material.
 Indirect Band Gap Semiconductors

E E E

CB
Indirect Bandgap, Eg
Ec CB
Direct Bandgap Eg Photon CB Ec Er Ec
Ev kcb Phonon
Ev Ev
VB
VB kvb VB
–k k –k k –k k
(a) GaAs (b) Si (c) Si with a recombination center

(a) In GaAs the minimum of the CB is directly above the maximum of the VB. GaAs is
therefore a direct bandgap semiconductor. (b) In Si, the minimum of the CB is displaced from
the maximum of the VB and Si is an indirect bandgap semiconductor. (c) Recombination of
an electron and a hole in Si involves a recombination center .
© 1999 S.O. Kasap, Optoelectronics (Prentice Hall)
 What is Diode?
• Made of silicon or germanium
• Low (ideally zero) resistance to current flow in one
direction, and high (ideally infinite) resistance in the
other
 Diode equation

● The current-voltage (I-V) characteristic of the junction is given by the

diode equation:
I = I0(exp(eV/kBT) – 1)

● The current I is the injection current under a forward bias V.

● I0 is the “saturation current” representing thermal-generated free

carriers which flow through the junction (dark current).
LIGHT EMITTING DIODE
(LED)
 LIGHT EMITTING DIODE
(LED)
● A light emitting diode (LED) is essentially a PN
junction opto-semiconductor that emits a monochromatic
(single color) light when operated in a forward biased
direction.
● LEDs convert electrical energy into light energy.
They are frequently used as "pilot" lights in electronic
appliances to indicate whether the circuit is closed or not.
 About LEDs
The most important part of a light emitting diode (LED) is the
semi-conductor chip located in the center of the bulb as shown at the
right. The chip has two regions separated by a junction. The p region is
dominated by positive electric charges, and the n region is dominated by
negative electric charges. The junction acts as a barrier to the flow of
electrons between the p and the n regions. Only when sufficient voltage
is applied to the semi-conductor chip, can the current flow, and the
electrons cross the junction into the p region.
How Does A LED Work? (1/2)
● When sufficient voltage is applied to the chip
across the leads of the LED, electrons can move easily
in only one direction across the junction between the p
and n regions.

● In the p region there are many more positive

than negative charges.

● When a voltage is applied and the current

starts to flow, electrons in the n region have sufficient
energy to move across the junction into the p region.
 How Does A LED Work? (2/2)
● Each time an electron recombines with a positive
charge, electric potential energy is converted into
electromagnetic energy.

● For each recombination of a negative and a positive

charge, a quantum of electromagnetic energy is emitted in
the form of a photon of light with a frequency characteristic
of the semi-conductor material (usually a combination of the
chemical elements gallium, arsenic and phosphorus)..
LED: How It Works(Graphical views)
• When current flows
across a diode

• Negative electrons move one way and

positive holes move the other way
LED: How It Works(Graphical views)
• The holes exist at a
lower energy level than
the free electrons

• Therefore when a free electrons falls it

losses energy
LED: How It Works(Graphical views)
• This energy is emitted
in a form of a photon,
which causes light

• The color of the light is determined by

the fall of the electron and hence
energy level of the photon
 Light-Emitting Diodes (LEDs)
a) Cross-section drawing of a
typical GaAlAs double
heterostructure light
emitter. In this structure, x>y to
provide for both carrier
confinement and optical guiding.
b) Energy-band diagram showing
the active region, the electron &
hole barriers which confine the
charge carriers to the active layer.
c) Variations in the refractive
index; the lower refractive index
of the material in regions 1 and 5
creates an optical barrier around
the waveguide because of the
higher band-gap energy of this
material.

1.240
λ ( µm) =
E g (eV)
 Light-Emitting Diodes (LEDs)
LED configurations :
1- Surface Emitters (Front Emitters)
2- Edge Emitters
 Surface-Emitting LED

Schematic of high-radiance surface-emitting LED. The active

region is limited to a circular cross section that has an area
compatible with the fiber-core end face.
 Edge-Emitting LED

Schematic of an edge-emitting double heterojunction LED.

The output beam is lambertian in the plane of junction and
highly directional perpendicular to pn junction.
They have high quantum efficiency & fast response.
 Light Source Material
• Most of the light sources contain III-V ternary &
quaternary compounds.
• Ga1− x Alx As by varying x it is possible to control the
band-gap energy and thereby the emission
wavelength over the range of 800 nm to 900 nm.
The spectral width is around 20 to 40 nm.
• In1− x Ga x As y P1− y By changing 0<x<0.47; y is
approximately 2.2x, the emission wavelength can
be controlled over the range of 920 nm to 1600 nm.
The spectral width varies from 70 nm to 180 nm
when the wavelength changes from 1300 nm to
1600 nm. These materials are lattice matched.
 Colours of LEDs (1/3)
● LEDs are made from gallium-based
crystals that contain one or more additional
materials such as phosphorous to produce a
distinct color. Different LED chip technologies
emit light in specific regions of the visible light
spectrum and produce different intensity levels.

● LEDs are available in red, orange, amber, yellow, green, blue and
white. Blue and white LEDs are much more expensive than the other colours. The
colour of an LED is determined by the semiconductor material, not by the
colouring of the 'package' (the plastic body). LEDs of all colours are available in
uncoloured packages which may be diffused (milky) or clear (often described as
'water clear'). The coloured packages are also available as diffused (the standard
type) or transparent.
LED chip materials and colors
 Colours of LEDs (2/3)

Bi-colour LEDs

A bi-colour LED has two LEDs wired

in 'inverse parallel' (one forwards, one
backwards) combined in one package with
two leads. Only one of the LEDs can be lit
at one time and they are less useful than
the tri-colour LEDs described above.
 Colours of LEDs (3/3)

Tri-colour LEDs

The most popular type of tri-colour LED has a red and a

green LED combined in one package with three leads. They are
called tri-colour because mixed red and green light appears to be
yellow and this is produced when both the red and green LEDs are
on.

The diagram shows the construction of a tri - colour LED.

Note the different lengths of the three leads. The centre lead (k) is
the common cathode for both LEDs, the outer leads (a1 and a2) are
the anodes to the LEDs allowing each one to be lit separately, or
both together to give the third colour.
How Much Energy of a photon Does an LED
Emit?
● The energy (E) of the photon emitted by an
LED is related to the electric charge (q) of an electron
and the voltage (V) required to light the LED by the
expression: E = qV Joules.

● This expression simply says that the voltage is

proportional to the electric energy, and is a general
statement which applies to any circuit, as well as to
LED's. The constant q is the electric charge of a single
electron, 1.6 x 10-19 Coulomb.
 Finding the photon energy from the voltage:
Example
Suppose you measured the voltage across the leads of
an LED, and you wished to find the corresponding energy
required to light the LED. Let us say that you have a red LED,
and the voltage measured between the leads of is 1.71 Volts.
So the Energy required to light the LED is

E = qV or E = 1.6 x 10-19 (1.71) Joule,

since a Coulomb-Volt is a Joule. Multiplication of these

numbers then gives

E = 2.74 x 10-19 Joule.

 Applications

• Sensor Applications
• Mobile Applications
• Sign Applications
• Automative Uses
• LED Signals
• Illuminations
• Indicators
 Testing LEDs
Never connect an LED directly to a
battery or power supply! It will be destroyed
almost instantly because too much current
will pass through and burn it out.

LEDs must have a resistor in series to

limit the current to a safe value, for quick
testing purposes a 1k resistor is suitable for
most LEDs if your supply voltage is 12V or less.

Remember to connect the LED the

correct way round!
 Some Types of LEDs

Bargraph 7-segment Starburst Dot matrix

SEMICONDUCTOR LASER
(Diode laser)
Principle of
Laser Diode
 Laser Diode Principle
● Consider a p-n junction
● In order to design a laser diode, the p-n junction must be
heavily doped.
● In other word, the p and n materials must be degenerately
doped
● By degenerated doping, the Fermi level* of the n-side will
lies in the conduction band whereas the Fermi level in the
p-region will lie in the valance band.

* Fermi level is the term used to describe the top of the

collection of electron energy levels at absolute zero
temperature.
Basic Mechanism :
The basic mechanism responsible for light emission from a semiconductor is the
recombination of electrons and holes at a p-n junction when a current is passed
through a diode.

There can be three interaction processes:

1)An electron in the valence band can absorb the incident radiation and be excited to
the conduction band leading to the generation of eletron-hole pair.
2) An electron can make a spontaneous transition in which it combines with a hole and
in the process it emits radiation
3) A stimulated emission may occur in which the incident radiation stimulates an
electron in the conduction band to make a transition to the valence band and in the
process emit radiation.

To convert the amplifying medium into a laser

Optical feedback should be provided
Done by cleaving or polishing the ends of the p-n
junction diode at right angles to the junction.
Basic Mechanism :

When a current is passed through a p-n junction under

forward bias, the injected electrons and holes will increase the
density of electrons in the conduction band.

 The stimulated emission rate will exceed the absorption rate

and amplification will occur at some value of current due to
holes in valence band.

 As the current is further increased, at threshold value of the

current, the amplification will overcome the losses in the
cavity and the laser will begin to emit coherent radiation.
 Diode Laser Operation
p+ Junction n+
E
c
p+ n+
E
g eV E E
o c Fn
Inversion E
E region c
E
Ev Holesin VB E g eV
Fp Electrons Electronsin CB E Fn
c
E
Fp

E
( a) v (b)

•P-n junction must be degenerately doped. V

•Forward bias, eV> Eg
•Fermi level in (VB)valance band (p) and
(CB)conduction band (n). •Built in potential diminished to zero
•No bias, built n potential; eVo barrier to stop •Electrons and holes can diffuse to the space
electron and holes movement charge layer
 Application of Forward Bias

● Suppose that the degenerately doped p-n

junction is forward biased by a voltage greater
than the band gap; eV > Eg
● The separation between EFn and EFp is now the
applied potential energy
● The applied voltage diminished the built-in
potential barrier, eVo to almost zero.
● Electrons can now flow to the p-side
● Holes can now flow to the n-side
 Population Inversion in Diode Laser
Energy

Optical gain EF n − EF p
CB
EF n
Electrons
Ec in CB
eV 0 hυ
Eg
Ev Holes in VB
= Empty states At T > 0
EF p
VB At T = 0
Optical absorption
Density of states
(a) (b )

(a) The density of states and energy distribution of electrons and holes in
the conduction and valence bands respectively at T ≈ 0 in the SCL
under forward bias such that E Fn − E Fp > E g . Holes in the VB are empty
states. (b) Gain vs. photon energy.
© 1999 S.O. Kasap, Optoelectronics (Prentice Hall)
 Population Inversion in Diode
Laser
More electrons in
the conduction
band near EC
CB
EFn
Electrons in CB

eV Eg
Than electrons in
Holes in VB the valance band
EFp near EV
VB

EFn-EfP = eV
There is therefore a population inversion between
eV > Eg
energies near EC and near EV around the junction.
eV = forward bias voltage
This only achieved when degenerately doped p-n
Fwd Diode current pumping  junction is forward bias with energy > Egap
injection pumping
 The Lasing Action
• The population inversion region is a layer along the
junction  also called inversion layer or active region.
• Now consider a photon with E = Eg
• Obviously this photon can not excite electrons from EV
since there is NO electrons there.
• However the photon CAN STIMULATE electron to fall
down from CB to VB.
• Therefore, the incoming photon stimulates emission
than absorption.
• The active region is then said to have ‘optical gain’ since
the incoming photon has the ability to cause emission
rather than being absorbed.
 Pumping Mechanism in Laser Diode

• It is obvious that the population

inversion between energies near EC and
those near EV occurs by injection of large
charge carrier across the junction by
forward biasing the junction.
• Therefore the pumping mechanism is
FORWARD DIODE CURRENT  Injection
pumping
 For Successful Lasing Action
1. Optical Gain (not absorb)
● Achieved by population inversion
2. Optical Feedback
● Achieved by device configuration
● Needed to increase the total optical amplification by
making photons pass through the gain region multiple
times
● Insert 2 mirrors at each end of laser
● This is term an oscillator cavity or Fabry Perot cavity
● Mirrors are partly transmitted and party reflected
Optical Power in Laser is Very High
due to Optical Feedback and
Higher Forward Bias Current.

Threshold current density

 Laser Diode Materials

 Basically all of the materials are similar to

that of LED.

 UV, Vis and IR Laser can be produced.

Materials for LED and Laser Diodes -
summary
Materials
Available
 InGaN and AlGaN
• InGaN and AlGaN have been produced over the entire composition range
between their component binaries; InN, GaN, AlN
• InAlN is less explored.
• GaN and AlN are fairly well lattice-matched to SiC substrates,
• SiC has substrate is better as it can be doped (dopability) and high thermal
conductivity relative to more commonly used Al2O3 substrates.
• AlN and GaN can be used for high temperature application due to wide
bandgaps and low intrinsic carrier concentrations.
 Optical Feedback
● In diode laser it is not necessary to use external mirrors to
provide positive feedback. The high refractive index
normally ensure that the reflectance at the air/material
interface is sufficiently high
● The diode is often cleaved at one end and roughened at
the other end.
● This results in the radiation generated within the active
region spread out into the surrounding lossy GaAs, and
there is a confinement of the radiation within a small
region called the mode volume,
● In the a mode volume, there are additional carriers present
which increases the refractive index of the material as
compared to the surrounding material.
● This produces a dielectric waveguide similar to the
heterojunctuction LED. However the difference is too
small to be an efficient waveguide.
 Laser Diode Characteristics

• Nanosecond & even picosecond response time (GHz BW)

• Spectral width of the order of nm or less
• High output power (tens of mW)
• Narrow beam (good coupling to single mode fibers)

• Laser diodes have three distinct radiation modes namely,

longitudinal, lateral and transverse modes.

• In laser diodes, end mirrors provide strong optical feedback in

longitudinal direction, so by roughening the edges and cleaving the
facets, the radiation can be achieved in longitudinal direction rather
than lateral direction.
Structures of Laser Diodes:
● Simple structure (Homojunction)

● Heterostructure
Simple structure (Homojunction) :

• The basic semiconductor laser structure in which

the photons generated by the injection current travel to
the edge mirrors and are reflected back into the active
area.
• Photoelectron collisions take place and produce
more photons, which continue to bounce back and
forth between the two edge mirrors.
• This process eventually increases the number of
generated photons until lasing takes place. The lasing
will take place at particular wavelengths that are
related to the length of the cavity.
• Laser diode is an improved LED, in the sense that uses
stimulated emission in semiconductor from optical
transitions between distribution energy states of the
valence and conduction bands with optical resonator
structure such as Fabry-Perot resonator with both optical
and carrier confinements.
Basic semiconductor laser structure
a) Side view, b) Projection
 DFB(Distributed FeedBack) Lasers
• In DFB lasers, the optical resonator structure is due to the
incorporation of Bragg grating or periodic variations of the refractive
index into multilayer structure along the length of the diode.
Heterostructure :

● The heterostructure laser is a laser diode with more than

single P and N layers. GaAs/AlGaAs is a heterojunction laser. The
notations P+ and N+ and P- and N- indicate heavy doping and light
doping respectively. The P-N structure consists of the two double
layers, P+ - P- and N+ - N- .

● A thin layer of GaAs is placed at the junction, the active

region. The substance is selected because the electron-hole
recombinations are highly radiative. This increases the radiation
efficiency.

● The P and N regions are lightly doped regions that have an

index of refraction n2 less than n1 of the active region. These three
layers, n2-n1-n2, form a light waveguide much like the optical fiber,
so that the light generated is confined to the active region.
Heterostructure
(a) Schematic projection (b) Refractive index profile
Laser Diode with buried heterostructure
(BH)
Heterostructures : Examples
Problem : Calculate the wavelength of emission from GaAs
semiconductor laser whose band gap energy is 1.44 ev
(plank’s constant is 6.625 x 10-34 Js and charge of an electron
is 1.6 x 10-19 C.
Given data : Band gap energy Eg = 1.44 ev (or) 1.44 x 1.6 x 10-
19 Joules.

Solution :
We know Band gap energy (Eg) = hν (or) hc/λ
we can write λ = hc/Eg
λ = 6.625 x 10-34 x 3 x 108) / (1.44 x 1.6 x 10-19)
-7
= 8.6263 x 10 m
-10
= 8626.3 x 10 m

o
∴ wave length of GaAs laser = 8626.3 A
Photodiode: a photodetector
PN-photodiode
υL: longest operating wavelength
υS: shortst operating wavelength
 Junction photodiodes
● The semiconductor photodiode detector is a p-n junction structure
that is based on the internal photoeffect.

● The photoresponse of a photodiode results from the photogeneration

of electron-hole pairs through band-to-band optical absorption.
=> The threshold photon energy of a semiconductor photodiode is
the bandgap energy Eg of its active region.

● The photogenerated electrons and holes in the depletion layer are

subject to the local electric field within that layer. The electron/hole
carriers drift in opposite directions. This transport process induces an
electric current in the external circuit.

● Here, we will focus on semiconductor homojunctions.

How can we measure radiation using
PN junction diode?
Incident radiation

- electron-hole pairs

+ The minority carriers (electrons on the p-side and holes

on the n-side) diffuse toward the opposite side

Measured by the electrometer

● In the depletion layer, the internal electric field sweeps the
photogenerated electron to the n side and the photogenerated hole to
the p side.
=> a drift current that flows in the reverse direction from the n side
(cathode) to the p side (anode).

● Within one of the diffusion regions at the edges of the depletion

layer, the photogenerated minority carrier (hole in the n side and
electron in the p side) can reach the depletion
layer by diffusion and then be swept to the other side by the internal
field.
=> a diffusion current that also flows in the reverse direction.

● In the p or n homogeneous region, essentially no current is generated

because there is essentially no internal field to separate the charges and
a minority carrier generated in a
homogeneous region cannot diffuse to the depletion layer before
recombining with a majority carrier.
Photoconductive and photovoltaic modes
● There are two modes of operation for a junction photodiode:
photoconductive and photovoltaic

● The device functions in photoconductive mode in the third quadrant of

its current-voltage characteristics, including the short-circuit condition
on the vertical axis for V = 0. (acting as a current source)

● It functions in photovoltaic mode in the fourth quadrant, including the

open-circuit condition on the horizontal axis for I = 0. (acting as a
voltage source with output voltage limited by the equilibrium contact
potential)

● The mode of operation is determined by the bias condition and the

external circuitry.
PIN-Photodiode
 What is PIN-Photodiode?
PIN diode is a diode with intrinsic semiconductor region
• Made
between of a PIN
p-type structure and n-type semiconductor. In
semiconductor
practice, the intrinsic region does not have to be truly
intrinsic but only has to be highly resistive (lightly doped p
or n region).

Intrinsic semiconductor

– In concentration, hole = electron

– Intrinsic semiconductor = pure semiconductor
 Physical Principles of PIN-photodiode
Reverse bias
↓
radiation greater than the band-gap
energy
of the material (1.12 eV for Si)
↓
Excite a valance band electron
into the conduction band
↓
causing a current to flow in an external
circuit

The high electric field present in the depletion region causes photo-
generated carriers to separate and be collected across the reverse –biased
junction. This give rise to a current flow in an external circuit, known as
photocurrent.
Energy-Band diagram for a pin-photodiode
 Responsivity
• The primary photocurrent resulting from absorption is:

q
Ip = P0 (1 − e −α s ( λ ) w )(1 − R f )
hν

• Quantum Efficiency:
# of electron - hole photogenerated pairs
η=
# of incident photons
IP / q
η=
P0 / hν

• Responsivity: IP ηq
ℜ= = [A/W]
P0 hν
Responsivity vs. wavelength
 PIN-photodiodes offer the following
advantages:
● Increasing the width of the depletion layer (where the
generated carriers can be transported by drift) increases the
area available for capturing light.

● Increasing the width of the depletion layer reduces the

junction capacitance and thereby the RC time constant. Yet,
the transit time increases with the width of the depletion
layer.

● Reducing the ratio between the diffusion length and the

drift length of the device results in a greater proportion of the
generated current being carried by the faster drift process.
 Photodetector Noise & S/N
• Detection of weak optical
signal requires that the
photodetector and its
following amplification
circuitry be optimized for a
desired signal-to-noise
ratio.

• It is the noise current which

determines the minimum
optical power level that can
be detected. This minimum
detectable optical power
defines the sensitivity of
photodetector. That is the S signal power from photocurrent
=
optical power that N photodetector noise power + amplifier noise power
generates a photocurrent
with the amplitude equal to
that of the total noise
current (S/N=1)
 Noise Sources in Photodetecors
• The principal noises associated with photodetectors are :
1- Quantum (Shot) noise: arises from statistical nature of the production
and collection of photo-generated electrons upon optical illumination. It has
been shown that the statistics follow a Poisson process.
2- Dark current noise: is the current that continues to flow through the
bias circuit in the absence of the light. This is the combination of bulk dark
current, which is due to thermally generated e and h in the pn junction, and
the surface dark current, due to surface defects, bias voltage and surface
area.
• In order to calculate the total noise presented in photodetector, we should
sum up the root mean square of each noise current by assuming that those
are uncorrelated.

• Total photodetector noise current=quantum noise current +bulk dark

current noise + surface current noise
 Photodetector Response Time

• The response time of a photodetector with its output circuit depends mainly
on the following three factors:
1- The transit time of the photocarriers in the depletion region. The transit
time t ddepends on the carrier drift velocity v d and the depletion layer
width w, and is given by:
w
td =
vd
2- Diffusion time of photocarriers outside depletion region.
3- RC time constant of the circuit. The circuit after the photodetector acts
like RC low pass filter with a passband given by:

1
B=
2πRT CT
RT = Rs || RL and CT = C a + C d
Photodiode response to optical pulse

Typical response time of the

photodiode that is not fully depleted
 Various optical responses of photodetectors:
Trade-off between quantum efficiency & response time

• To achieve a high quantum

efficiency, the depletion layer
width must be larger than
(the inverse of the absorption 1 / α s
coefficient), so that most of the
light will be absorbed. At the
same time with large width, the
capacitance is small and RC time
constant getting smaller, leading
to faster response, but wide
width results in larger transit time
in the depletion region. Therefore
there is a trade-off between
width and QE. It is shown that
the best is:

1/ α s ≤ w ≤ 2 / α s
Comparison of photodetectors