EEE 532--Semiconductor Device Theory II
Spring 2010
Time and place: 12:00-1:15 pm TTh, SCOB 101.
Final Exam: Thursday, May 6th, 9:50-11:40 am, in regular classroom (SCOB 101).
Instructor: Dr. Brian Skromme
Office: ERC 155 Phone: (480) 965-8592 FAX: (480) 965-8118 e-mail:
Office hours: 3:40-4:30 pm MW, 10:40-11:30 pm TTh. (Appointments available at other times if you have a conflict with scheduled office hours. They should be made in advance).
Catalog Description: Prerequisite: EEE 531. (If you did not take this course at ASU, please check with me to confirm that you have the equivalent background). Topics: Advanced MOSFET’s, charge-coupled devices, solar cells, photodetectors, light-emitting diodes, microwave diodes, and modulation-doped structures.
Required Background: Quantum mechanics is not required for this course and will be used only sparingly (but is required for all more advanced courses in this area, and should be taken as early as possible in your program). A graduate level background in transport and recombination theory, semiconductor electrostatics, pn junction diodes, bipolar transistors, and MOS capacitors and transistors, such as that in EEE 531, is required.
Required text:
S.M. Sze and K.K. Ng, Physics of Semiconductor Devices, 3rd ed. (Wiley, 2007).
We will cover portions of Chapters 3,5,7, 9-10, and 12-13, although I will not follow the book closely in all of the lectures. Readings may be assigned from this text, and occasionally from other sources such as books and journal papers.
Grading:Two hour exams...... 50%
Final exam...... 30%
Homework...... 20%
EXAMS MUST BE TAKEN AT THE SCHEDULED TIMES. NO LATE HOMEWORK WILL BE ACCEPTED.
Policies: Studying in small groups is permitted, but homework must be completed individually. Collaboration on homework, or use of old homework papers or solution manuals is considered cheating. Cheating on examinations and any form of plagiarism are strictly forbidden.
Calculator Policy: Scientific calculators are required for all exams. Preferably, they should be nonprogrammable. If they are programmable, you should be prepared to show me how to erase their memory completely at the start of each exam or you will not be permitted to use them. Of course, no sharing of calculators or other materials is permitted during exams.
Supplementary Reading:
E.H. Rhoderick and R.H. Williams, Metal-Semiconductor Contacts, 2nd ed. (1988). (Schottky barriers, ohmic contacts).
S.M. Sze (ed.), High Speed Semiconductor Devices (1990). (theory of high speed transistor structures).
S.M. Sze (ed.), Modern Semiconductor Device Physics (1998). (Supplements the text for this course).
H.C. Casey, Jr. and M.B. Panish, Heterostructure Lasers, Pts. A and B (1978).
S. Tiwari, Compound Semiconductor Device Physics (Academic, 1990). (junctions, metal-semiconductor contacts, MESFET’s, HFET’s, HBT’s; rigorous treatment and modeling.)
Shyh Wang, Fundamentals of Semiconductor Theory and Device Physics (1989). (excellent discussion of semiconductor physics and devices, introductory graduate level).
C.M. Wolfe, N. Holonyak, Jr., and G.E. Stillman, Physical Properties of Semiconductors (1989). (semiconductor physics and theory of junctions).
Charles A. Lee and G. Conrad Dalman,Microwave Devices, Circuits and Their Interaction(1994). (microwave devices & circuits).
Other general references:
B. Van Zeghbroeck, Principles of Semiconductor Devices, available completely free at (Very good textbook but closer to 436 level.)
Y. Taur and T. Ning, Fundamentals of Modern VLSI Devices, 2nd ed. (2009). (Excellent recent text emphasizing physics of modern submicron Si MOS and bipolar devices.)
Sheng Li, Semiconductor Physical Electronics (2nd ed.) (2006). (Comprehensive coverage of semiconductor physics and device theory.)
H. K. Henisch, Semiconductor Contacts (1984). (Schottky barriers, ohmic contacts.)
A.G. Milnes and D. Feucht, Heterojunctions and Metal-Semiconductor Junctions (1972). (Somewhat dated discussion of heterojunction theory).
B.L. Sharma and R.K. Purohit, Semiconductor Heterojunctions (1974). (Also dated).
Cheng T. Wang (ed.), Introduction to Semiconductor Technology: GaAs and Related Compounds (1990) (Discussion of current GaAs devices and technologies.)
R.F. Pierret, Advanced Semiconductor Fundamentals (Vol. VI of the Modular Series on SolidState Devices) (Addison-Wesley, Reading, 1987).
M.J. Howes and D.V. Morgan (eds.), Microwave Devices (1977).
E.M. Conwell, “High Field Transport in Semiconductors,” in SolidState Physics, Suppl. 9, F. Seitz, ed. (1967).
M.P. Shaw, H. Grubin, and P. Solomon, The Gunn-Hilsum Effect (1979).
Sigfrid Yngvesson, Microwave Semiconductor Devices (1991).
M. Shur, GaAs Devices and Circuits (1987).
M.S. Shur, Physics of Semiconductor Devices (1990). (Broad treatment at graduate level; explanations not always very clear.)
K. Seeger, Semiconductor Physics (1982).
A. Yariv, Optical Electronics, 3rd ed. (1985). (Optics, lasers, fibers, photodetectors.)
A. Yariv, Quantum Electronics, 2nd ed. (1975).
K.A. Jones, Introduction to Optical Electronics (1987).
A.A. Bergh and P.J. Dean, Light-Emitting Diodes (1976). (Dated but very detailed discussion.)
G.H.B. Thompson, Physics of Semiconductor Laser Devices (1982).
H. Kressel and J.K. Butler, Semiconductor Lasers and LED’s (1977).
J. Verdeyen, Laser Electronics (2nd ed.). (General treatment of lasers, esp. gas lasers.)
H. Kressel (ed.), “Semiconductor Devices for Optical Communications,” Topics in Applied Physics Series, Vol. 39 (1986).
T.P. Pearsall (ed.), GaInAsP Alloy Semiconductors (1982) (Lasers and photodetectors.)
B.G. Streetman and S. Banerjee, SolidState Electronic Devices, 6th ed. (standard undergrad. device text)
C. Weisbuch and B. Vintner, Quantum Semiconductor Structures (1991). (Introduction to quantum-based structures, physics, and devices).
J. Singh, Physics of Semiconductors and their Heterostructures (1994). (Good treatment of heterostructures, including strain effects).
J. Singh, Semiconductor Optoelectronics (1995) (Much in common with other Singh book above).
P. Bhattacharya, Semiconductor Optoelectronic Devices (1994). (Broad treatment but many errors.)
K. Hess, Advanced Theory of Semiconductor Devices, 2nd ed. (1999). (Semiconductor physics, heterojunctions, modulation doping.)
T.G. Van de Roer, Microwave Electronic Devices (1994). (Brief treatment of microwave devices.)
Omar Manasreh, Semiconductor Heterojunctions and Nanostructures (2005).
K. F. Brennan and A. S. Brown, Theory of Modern Electronic Semiconductor Devices (2002) (heterostructure-based device theory).
William Liu, Fundamentals of III-V Devices (1999). III-V based heterostructures, HBT’s, and HFET’s.
J. J. Liou, Principles and Analysis of AlGaAs/GaAs Heterojunction Bipolar Transistors (1996). (Specialized book on GaAs HBTs.)
U. K. Mishra and J. Singh, Semiconductor Device Physics and Design (2008). (General device text including BJTs and HFETs.)
William Liu, Handbook of III-V Heterojunction Bipolar Transistors (1998). (Exhaustive treatment of III-V-based HBTs.)
R. M. Warner, Jr. and B. L. Grung, Transistors (1983). (Thorough coverage of bipolar and MOS transistors.)
P. Roblin and H. Rohdin, High-speed Heterostructure Devices (2002). (Detailed quantum mechanically-based discussion of semiconductor physics and heterostructure devices.)
[Britney Spears’ Guide to Semiconductor Physics] (No joke, actually contains useful discussions of semiconductor lasers.)
APPROXIMATE SYLLABUS:
The emphasis of this course will be on a survey of advanced Si and compound semiconductor device physics, especially heterojunctions and metal-semiconductor junctions; high frequency transistors including heterojunction bipolar transistors, JFET’s, and MESFET’s; and microwave and optical devices. Specific topics will be emphasized depending on student interest.
Topics will be selected from the following, as time permits:
I.Semiconductor heterojunctions (classification, band offsets, thermodynamic forces for carrier redistribution, electrostatics, pseudomorphic structures).
II. Transport in heterojunctions and metal-semiconductor junctions (vertical transport via thermionic emission, field-aided thermionic emission, field emission, and diffusion theory; two-dimensional carrier gases, modulation doping, and lateral transport; applications of heterojunctions and Schottky diodes).
III. Bipolar and heterojunction bipolar transistors (operational principle and basic theory, high level injection, Ebers-Moll and Gummel-Poon models, secondary effects, high frequency behavior, use of heterojunctions to enhance device characteristics).
IV. Nonequilibrium MOS devices, including semiconductor memories and CCD devices.
V.Junction and metal-semiconductor field effect transistors (comparative analysis, gradual channel theory, high frequency behavior, velocity saturation effects, noise properties).
VI.Transit-time diodes (IMPATT structures, phase relations, BARITT and TRAPATT diodes).
VII.Transferred-electron devices (transferred electron effect, charge instabilities, LSA mode, hybrid mode, transit mode).
VIII.Light-emitting diodes (nature of optical transitions, materials considerations, internal and external quantum efficiencies, modulation).
IX.Semiconductor lasers (spontaneous and stimulated emission, Einstein A and B coefficients, optical modes, criterion for lasing, heterostructures, device structures and geometries, single-frequency lasers and applications to fiber-optic communications, modulation).
X.Photodetectors and solar cells (photoconductive and photovoltaic detectors, noise considerations, device structures and quantum efficiency, avalanche photodiodes, solar cell efficiency, surface recombination effects, tandem structures, materials systems).
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