semiconductor

(noun)

a substance with electrical properties between those of a good conductor and those of a good insulator

Related Terms

  • doped
  • conductor

Examples of semiconductor in the following topics:

  • Semiconductors

    • Semiconductors fall into two broad categories:
    • These are also called "undoped semiconductors" or "i-type semiconductors. "
    • While insulating materials may be doped to become semiconductors, intrinsic semiconductors can also be doped, resulting in an extrinsic semiconductor.
    • The impurities depend on the type of semiconductor.
    • When a semiconductor is doped to such a high level that it acts more like a conductor than a semiconductor, it is referred to as degenerate.
  • Doping: Connectivity of Semiconductors

    • There are two general categories of semiconductors: intrinsic semiconductors, which are composed of only one material, and extrinsic semiconductors, which have had other substances added to them to alter their properties.
    • In semiconductor production, the process of creating extrinsic semiconductors by adding substances to a pure semiconductor for the purposes of modulating its electrical properties is known as doping.
    • The newly created semiconductor is better able to conduct current than the pure semiconductor.
    • While semiconductors doped with either n-type dopants or p-type dopants are better conductors than intrinsic semiconductors, interesting properties emerge when p- and n-type semiconductors are combined to form a p-n junction.
    • The free electrons from the n-type semiconductor combine with the holes in the p-type semiconductor near the junction.
  • Electrolytic Cells

    • Electrodes of metal, graphite, and semiconductor material are widely used.
  • Sulfur Compounds

    • These materials tend to be dark-colored semiconductors that are not readily attacked by water or even many acids.
    • The mineral galena (PbS) was the first demonstrated semiconductor.
  • Conductors

    • Semiconductors and insulators have a greater and greater energetic difference between the valence band and the conduction bands, requiring a larger applied voltage in order for electrons to flow.
  • Elemental Boron

    • Elemental boron is used as a dopant in the semiconductor industry.
  • Determining Atomic Structures by X-Ray Crystallography

    • Substances including inorganic salts and minerals, semiconductors, and organic and biological compounds can form crystals under suitable and specific conditions.
  • Trihalides: Boron-Halogen Compounds

    • The electronics industry uses boron tribromide as a boron source in pre-deposition processes for doping in the manufacture of semiconductors.
  • Voltaic Cells

    • Electrodes can be made from any sufficiently conductive materials, such as metals, semiconductors, graphite, and even conductive polymers.
  • Electron Configurations and Magnetic Properties of Ions

    • In bulk materials, this same idea helps explain the peculiar properties of lasers and semiconductors.
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