30
INTRODUCTION TO PHYSICS OF THE SOLID STATE
Equations (2.12) are valid for direct-gap materials where the conduction band
minimum is at point r. All the semiconductor materials under consideration have
their valence band maxima at the Brillouin zone center point r.
The situation for the conduction electron Fermi surface is more complicated for
the indirect-gap semiconductors. We mentioned above that Si and GaP have their
conduction band minima along the A direction of the Brillouin zone, and the
corresponding six ellipsoidal energy surfaces are sketched in Fig. 2.19b. The
longitudinal and transverse effective masses, mL and mT respectively, have the
following values
(2.13a)
"T
"0
"0
- mL = 0.92 - = 0.19 for Si
"T
mL - 7.25 - = 0.21 for Gap
"0
m0
_ -
(2.1 3 b)
for these two indirect-gap semiconductors. Germanium has its band minimum at
points L of the Brillouin zone sketched in Fig. 2.14, and its Fermi surface is the set of
ellipsoids centered at the L points with their axis along the A or (1 1 1) directions, as
shown in Fig. 2.19a. The longitudinal and transverse effective masses for these
ellipsoids in Ge are mL/mo = 1.58 and mT/mo = 0.081, respectively. Cyclotron
resonance techniques together with the application of stress to the samples can be
used to determine these effective masses for the indirect-bandgap semiconductors.
2.3. LOCALIZED PARTICLES
2.3.1. Donors, Acceptors, and Deep Traps
When a type V atom such as P, As, or Sb, which has five electrons in its outer or
valence electron shell, is a substitutional impurity in Si it uses four of these electrons
to satisfy the valence requirements of the four nearest-neighbor silicons, and the one
remaining electron remains weakly bound. The atom easily donates or passes on this
electron to the conduction band, so it is called a donor, and the electron is called a
donor electron. This occurs because the donor energy levels lie in the forbidden
region close to the conduction band edge by the amount AED relative to the thermal
energy value k,T, as indicated in Fig. 2.12. A Si atom substituting for Ga plays the
role of a donor in GaAs, A1 substituting for Zn in ZnSe serves as a donor, and so on.
A type I11 atom such as A1 or Ga, called an acceptor atom, which has three
electrons in its valence shell, can serve as a substitutional defect in Si, and in this
role it requires four valence electrons to bond with the tetrahedron of nearestneighbor Si atoms. To accomplish this, it draws or accepts an electron from the
valence band, leaving behind a hole at the top of this band. This occurs easily
because the energy levels of the acceptor atoms are in the forbidden gap slightly
above the valence band edge by the amount AEA relative to k,T, as indicated in
Fig. 2.12. In other words, the excitation energies needed to ionize the donors and to
INTRODUCTION TO PHYSICS OF THE SOLID STATE
Equations (2.12) are valid for direct-gap materials where the conduction band
minimum is at point r. All the semiconductor materials under consideration have
their valence band maxima at the Brillouin zone center point r.
The situation for the conduction electron Fermi surface is more complicated for
the indirect-gap semiconductors. We mentioned above that Si and GaP have their
conduction band minima along the A direction of the Brillouin zone, and the
corresponding six ellipsoidal energy surfaces are sketched in Fig. 2.19b. The
longitudinal and transverse effective masses, mL and mT respectively, have the
following values
(2.13a)
"T
"0
"0
- mL = 0.92 - = 0.19 for Si
"T
mL - 7.25 - = 0.21 for Gap
"0
m0
_ -
(2.1 3 b)
for these two indirect-gap semiconductors. Germanium has its band minimum at
points L of the Brillouin zone sketched in Fig. 2.14, and its Fermi surface is the set of
ellipsoids centered at the L points with their axis along the A or (1 1 1) directions, as
shown in Fig. 2.19a. The longitudinal and transverse effective masses for these
ellipsoids in Ge are mL/mo = 1.58 and mT/mo = 0.081, respectively. Cyclotron
resonance techniques together with the application of stress to the samples can be
used to determine these effective masses for the indirect-bandgap semiconductors.
2.3. LOCALIZED PARTICLES
2.3.1. Donors, Acceptors, and Deep Traps
When a type V atom such as P, As, or Sb, which has five electrons in its outer or
valence electron shell, is a substitutional impurity in Si it uses four of these electrons
to satisfy the valence requirements of the four nearest-neighbor silicons, and the one
remaining electron remains weakly bound. The atom easily donates or passes on this
electron to the conduction band, so it is called a donor, and the electron is called a
donor electron. This occurs because the donor energy levels lie in the forbidden
region close to the conduction band edge by the amount AED relative to the thermal
energy value k,T, as indicated in Fig. 2.12. A Si atom substituting for Ga plays the
role of a donor in GaAs, A1 substituting for Zn in ZnSe serves as a donor, and so on.
A type I11 atom such as A1 or Ga, called an acceptor atom, which has three
electrons in its valence shell, can serve as a substitutional defect in Si, and in this
role it requires four valence electrons to bond with the tetrahedron of nearestneighbor Si atoms. To accomplish this, it draws or accepts an electron from the
valence band, leaving behind a hole at the top of this band. This occurs easily
because the energy levels of the acceptor atoms are in the forbidden gap slightly
above the valence band edge by the amount AEA relative to k,T, as indicated in
Fig. 2.12. In other words, the excitation energies needed to ionize the donors and to