DIODE

“Di “= Two, and “Ode “= Electrodes i.e a device or component having two electrodes viz Anode “+” (P) and
Cathode “-” (N).
WHAT IS A DIODE?
 is a two-terminal unidirectional power
electronics device.
 is the first invention in a family of
semiconductor electronics devices.
 is a semiconductor device that essentially
acts as a one-way switch for current.
 is a semiconductor device that allows
current to flow in one direction only,
blocking it in the opposite direction.
 are used to protect circuits by limiting
the voltage and to also transform AC into
DC.
 It can be made of either of the two semiconductor materials, silicon and germanium.

It has two terminals:

 Anode (positive side)
 Cathode (negative side)

DIODE CONSTRUCTION
There are two types of semiconductor material
a. Intrinsic Semiconductor
 is a pure semiconductor in which hole and electrons are available in equal numbers at room
temperature.
b. Extrinsic Semiconductor
 impurities are added to increase the number of holes or the number of electrons.
 These impurities are tri-valent (boron, indium, aluminum) or pentavalent (phosphorous,
Arsenic, Antimony).
A semiconductor diode has two layers.
a. One layer is made of a P-type semiconductor layer.
 If we add trivalent impurities in silicon or germanium, a greater number of holes are present
and it is a positive charge.

b. Second Layer is made of an N-type semiconductor layer.

 If we add pentavalent impurities in silicon or germanium, a greater number of electrons are
present and it is a negative change.

 A diode is formed by joining two equivalently doped P-Type and N-Type semiconductor.
 When they are joined an interesting phenomenon takes place.
 The P-Type semiconductor has excess holes and is of positive charge.
 The N-Type semiconductor has excess electrons.
 At the point of contact of the P-Type and N-Type regions, the holes in the P-Type attract electrons in the
N-Type material.
 Hence the electron diffuses and occupies the holes in the P-Type material. Causing a small region of
the N-type near the junction to lose electrons and behave like intrinsic semiconductor material, in the P-
type a small region gets filled up by holes and behaves like a intrinsic semiconductor.
  This thin intrinsic region is called depletion layer, since its depleted of charge (see diagram above) and
hence offers high resistance.
 Its this depletion region that prevents the further diffusion of majority carriers.
 In physical terms the size of the depletion layer is very thin.

DIODE BIASED VOLTAGE

The circuit diagram to obtain the VI characteristic of the diode is as shown in the below figure.

In electronics, bias refers to the application of a steady voltage or current to an electronic component to
establish a reference operating point. This allows the component , such as diode to function correctly within a
circuit.
For example: In a diode, forward bias means applying a voltage that allows current to flow, while reverse bias
blocks current.

Bias ensures that components function efficiently and predictability in their circuits.

The characteristic is divided into two parts;

 Forward Bias
 Reverse Bias

When voltage is not applied, the current flowing through the circuit is zero. The point ‘O’ shows this condition
where voltage and current are zero.
[Link] BIAS

 When a diode is zero biased, that is has no bias, it just stays.

 Almost no current passes through the diode.
 However, if you connect the anode and cathode of the diode you might be able to observe small voltage
or current that is insignificant.
 This is because the electromagnetic spectrum that's present in our environment by default (microwave
background, heat, light, radio waves) knocks off electrons in the semiconductor lattice that constitutes
current.
 For practical reasons this current can be considered zero.

[Link] BIAS
  In reverse bias the P-type region is connected to negative voltage and N-type is connected to positive
terminal as shown above.
 In this condition the holes in P-type gets filled by electrons from the battery / cell (in other words the
holes get sucked out of the diode).
 The electrons in N-type material is sucked out of the diode by the positive terminal of the battery. So
the diode gets depleted of charge.
 So initially the depletion layer widens (see image above) and it occupies the entire diode. The resistance
offered by the diode is very huge.
 The current that flows in reverse bias is only due to minority charge which is in nano amperes in silicon
and micro amperes in high power silicon and germanium diodes.

[Link] BIASED

 In forward bias the P-Region of the diode is connected with the positive terminal of the battery and N-
region is connected with the negative region.
 During the forward bias the following process occurs.
 The positive of the battery pumps more holes into the P-region of the diode.
 The negative terminal pumps electrons into the N-region.
 The excess of charge in P and N region will apply pressure on the depletion region and will make it
shrink.
 As the voltage increases the depletion layer will become thinner and thinner and hence diode will offer
lesser and lesser resistance.
 Since the resistance decreases the current will increase (though not proportional) to the voltage.

At one particular voltage level Vf called the threshold / firing / cut-off voltage the depletion layer disappears
(overwhelmed by the charge) and hence from this point on the diode starts to conduct very easily. From this point
on the diode current increases exponentially to the voltage applied.

TYPES OF DIODES
1. P-N Junction Diode
 Is made up of semiconductor material.
 It consists of two layers of semiconductors.
 One layer is doped with P-type material and
the other layer with N-type material.
  The combination of these both P and N-type layers form a junction known as the P-N
junction. Hence the name P-N junction diode.
 It allows the flow of current in the forward direction and blocks it in reverse direction.
 They are also known as rectifier diode used for rectification.
 There are different types of diodes that use the P-N junction with variation in doping
concentration.
2. Small Signal Diode
 It is a type of P-N junction diode which operates on low voltage signals.
 Its junction area is very small.
 Due to which, the junction has less capacitance & low charge storing capacity.
 It enables the small signal diode to have high switching speed with very fast recovery
time.
 However, its limitations are low voltage and current parameters.
 Due to its high switching speed, these types of diodes are used in circuits with high
frequencies.
3. Rectifier Diode
 is a type of P-N junction diode, whose P-N junction
area is very large.
 This results in high capacitance in reverse direction.
 It has low switching speed.
 This is the most common and most used type of a diode.
 These types of diodes can handle heavy current and are used in converting AC into DC
(Rectification).
4. Schottky Diode
 The Schottky diode, named after a German
physicist Walter H. Schottky, is a type of diode
which consists of a small junction between an N-type
semiconductor and a metal. It has no P-N junction.
 The plus point of the Schottky diode is that it has
very low forward voltage drop and fast switching.
 As there is no capacitive junction (P-N junction), the Schottky diode switching speed is
very fast.
 The limitation of Schottky diode is that it has low reverse breakdown voltage and high
reverse leakage current.
5. Super Barrier Diodes
 are also rectifier diodes but they have a low forward voltage drop just like a
Schottky diode.
 They have low reverse leakage current just like a normal P-N junction diode.
 SBR uses MOSFET by making short contact between its gate and source.
 SBR has a low forward voltage drop, less reverse leakage current and fast switching
capability.
6. Light Emitting Diode (LED)
 is also a type of P-N junction diode that emits light in the
forward bias configuration.
  LED is made up of a direct-band semiconductor.
 When the charge carriers (electrons) cross the barrier and recombine with electron
holes on the other side, they emit photon particles (light).
 While the color of the light depends on the energy gap of the semiconductor.
 LED converts electrical energy into light energy.

7. Photodiode
 is a type of P-N junction diode that converts the light
energy into electrical current. Its operation is opposite
to that of an LED.
 Every semiconductor diode is affected by optical
charge carriers.
 It is why they are packaged in a light blocking
material.
 In the photodiode, there is a special opening that allows the light to enter its
sensitive part.
 When the light (Photon particles) strikes the PN junction, it creates an electron-hole
pair.
 These electron and hole flow out as electrical current.
 To increase its efficiency, a PIN junction diode is used.
 A photodiode is used in reverse bias and they can be used in solar cells.
8. Laser Diode
 is similar to LED because it converts electrical
energy into light energy.
 But unlike LED, Laser diode produces coherent
light.
 The laser diode consists of a PIN junction, where
electron and holes combine together in the intrinsic (I) region. when they combine,
it generates a laser beam.
 Laser diodes are used in optical communication, laser pointer, CD drives and laser
printer etc.
9. Tunnel Diode
 Tunnel diode was invented by Leo Esaki in
1958 for which he received Nobel prize in
1973, which is why it is also known as Esaki
diode.
 A tunnel diode is a heavily doped P-N
junction diode.
 It works on the principle of the tunneling effect.
 Due to heavy doping concentration, the junction barrier becomes very thin.
 This allows the electron to easily escape through the barrier.
 This phenomenon is known as tunneling effect.
 The Tunnel diode has a region in its VI curve where the current decreases as the
voltage increases.
  This region is known as the negative resistance region.
 The tunnel diode operates in this region in different applications such as
an oscillator and a microwave amplifier.
 The tunnel diode also conducts current in reverse direction & it is a fast switching
device.
10. Zener Diode
 Zener diode is named
after Clarence Malvin
Zener who discovered the zener
effect.
 It is a type of diode, which not
only allows the flow of current in
the forward direction but also in
reverse direction. when the reverse voltage reaches the breakdown voltage known
as Zener voltage it allows the current flow.
 The Zener diode has heavier doping concentration than a normal P-N junction
diode. Hence, it has a very thin depletion region.
 In forward bias, it operates as a simple P-N junction diode (Rectifier).
 In reverse bias, it blocks until the reverse voltage reaches breakdown. After that, it
allows the current flow with a constant voltage drop.
 Zener reverse breakdown is caused due to two reason i.e. electron quantum
tunneling and Avalanche breakdown.
 A Zener diode is mainly used in reverse bias configuration. It provides a stabilized
voltage for protection of circuits from overvoltage.
11. Backward Diode
 The backward diode or the back diode is a P-N
junction diode, whose operation is similar to that
of tunnel diode and Zener diode.
 But the operating voltages are much lower.
 A backward diode is essentially a tunnel diode,
whose one side of the junction has relatively less
doping concentration compared to the other side.
 In the forward bias, it operates as a tunnel diode but its tunneling effect is much reduced as
compared to tunnel diode.
 Otherwise, it operates as a normal P-N junction diode.
 In reverse bias, it operates as a Zener diode but the breakdown voltages are much lower.
 It is not widely used but it can be used for rectification of a small voltage signal (0.1 to 0.6v). Due
to its fast switching speed, it can be used as a switch in RF mixer and multiplier.
12. Avalanche Diode
 is a P-N junction diode that is specifically designed to operate in the avalanche breakdown
region.
 Avalanche breakdown is a phenomenon where sufficient reverse voltage is applied to the P-N
junction. Due to which, the minority carrier ionizes & starts a heavy current flow in reverse
direction.
 Avalanche diode works electrically similar to the Zener diode.
  However, the doping concentration of a Zener diode is relatively higher as compared to an
avalanche diode.
 The heavy doping inside the Zener diode creates a small junction & low voltages can easily break
it. However, the avalanche diode has a wide junction because of light doping concentration.
 Thus, it requires a high voltage for its breakdown.
 This wide junction makes it a better surge protector compare to a simple Zener diode.
[Link] Voltage Suppression (TVS) Diode
 Transient voltage suppression diode or TVS diode is a
type of avalanche diode that protects the circuit form high
voltage surges.
 TVS diode has the capability of handling high voltages as
compared to avalanche diode.
 Unidirectional TVS diode operates similar to avalanche diode. it acts as a rectifier in forward bias
& surge protector in reverse bias.
 Bidirectional TVS diode acts as two avalanche diodes opposing each other in series. It is
manufactured as a single component.
 It operates both ways and provides surge protection when used in parallel with a circuit.
14. Gold Doped Diode
 In such type of diode, Gold or platinum is used as the dopant (doping material).
 It enables the diode to operate at fast switching speed but at the expense of increasing the forward
voltage drop.
 Also, its reverse leakage current is higher than a normal P-N junction diode.
15. Constant Current Diode
 The constant current diode AKA the current-limiting diode (CLD) is a
two terminal diode made from JFET.
 It regulates the current flow through it up to a fixed level.
 CLD is made by making short contact between the gate and the source
of JFET.
 It limits the current just like Zener diode limits voltage.
16. Step Recovery Diode
 Step recovery diode or snap-off diode is a P-N
junction diode which abruptly ceases the flow of
current when its direction is reversed.
 The SRD (Step Recovery Diode) is made of a P-N
junction with very low doping concentration near the
junction.
 Due to which, the charge carriers (electron and holes) near the junction also decrease in number.
 Hence, the charge storing capacity near the junction becomes negligible.
 This enables the SRD to switch from ON to OFF very fast.
 In a normal diode, when it is switched from forward conduction to reverse cutoff, the current flows
briefly because of the stored charge.
 Due to which, the normal diode takes some time in switching.
 The SRD does not store charge, So it can cease the current flow instantaneously.
17. Peltier Or Thermal Diode
  Peltier or thermal diode is a type of diode whose thermal resistance is different in one direction
than the other direction. So the heat generated flows in one direction to one side (terminal) and
leaving the other side cooler.
 This diode is used in the application of heat monitoring in microprocessor and in refrigerators for
cooling effect.
18. Vacuum Diode
 It is the simplest form of a diode made from a vacuum tube
and two electrodes (cathode and anode). The Anode and
Cathode are enclosed inside the vacuum tube (empty glass).
 When the cathode heats up it emits electrons, the anode
picks up the electrons and the flow continues.
 The cathode can be heated directly or indirectly.
 In forward bias, the free electron on cathode release into the
vacuum after getting heat up.
 The anode collects these electrons and the current flows.
 In reverse bias, the free electron in the vacuum gets repelled
by the anode as it is connected to the negative terminal,
therefore the current does not flow.
 Thus, the current flows in only one direction.
19. Varactor Diode
 Varactor diode also known as Vericap diode are voltage
controlled capacitors.
 They have a P-N junction with variable junction
capacitance.
 The varactor diode operates under reverse bias conditions. The depletion layer between the P and
N-type material is varied by changing the reverse voltage.
 All diode’s junction capacitance varies with reverse voltage but Varactor diode is able to use this
effect with a high range of capacitance.
 The applications of Varactor diodes are as a voltage controlled oscillator in the phase-lock loop,
in RF tuning filters and frequency multipliers.
20. Gunn Diode
 Gunn diode AKA “Transferred Electron Device” (TED) is a type
of diode having negative resistance like tunnel diode.
 It is named after a British physicist J.B Gunn who discovered the
“Gunn Effect” in 1962.
 The Gunn diode does not have P-N junction.
 In fact, it consists of only N-type material, which is why it does not
rectify AC or work like a normal diode.
 It is also the reason many people call it “Transferred Electron Device” (TED) instead of a diode.
 It consists of three N-type layers; two of them which are on the terminal’s side have a higher
doping concentration whereas the middle thin layer has a lighter doping concentration.
 When the voltage is applied to Gunn diode, initially its current increases with increase in voltage.
 At higher voltage, the resistance of the middle layer starts increasing with voltage. It results in the
fall of the current flow.
 This is the negative resistance region & Gunn diode operates in this region.
 The Gunn diode is used in an oscillator for generating microwaves of high frequency.
21. PIN Diode
 PIN diode is a three-layer diode i.e. P-
layer, I-layer & N-layer.
 The ‘I‘ intrinsic semiconductor layer is
placed between heavily doped P and an
N-type semiconductor.
 The electron and holes from N and P-type region respectively flow to the intrinsic region (I).
 Once the “I” region fills completely with electron-holes, the diode starts conduction.
 In reverse bias, the wide intrinsic layer in the diode can block and tolerate high reverse voltages.
 At higher frequency, the PIN diode will act as a linear resistor.
 It is because of the fact that the PIN diode has poor reverse recovery time.
 The reason is that the heavily charged “I” region does not get enough time to discharge during fast
cycles.
 While at low frequency, it acts as a rectifier diode.
 Because it gets enough time to discharge & turn off during the cycle.
 If a photon enters the “I” region of a reversed bias PIN diode, it produces an electron-hole pair.
 This electron-hole pair flows out as current.
 So it is also used in photodetectors and photovoltaic cells.
 PIN diodes are used in high voltage rectification, in RF application as attenuator & switching
element.
22. Silicon Controlled Rectifier (SCR)
 SCR is a four-layer P-N-P-N semiconductor
switching device. It has three terminals Anode,
Cathode, and Gate.
 SCR is essentially a diode with an external control
input known as the gate input. It allows current flow in
one direction.
 When SCR is connected in the forward bias, it won’t yet
allow the flow of current.
 This is known as the forward blocking mode.
 To make SCR conduct in the forward mode, it either
needs the necessary voltage to cross its breakover limit or by applying a positive pulse to its gate
input.
 To turn off SCR, either decrease the current below the holding current point or turn off the gate
input and short circuit the anode-cathode momentarily.
 In reverse bias, the SCR does not allow current even after applying gate input.
 But if the reverse voltage reaches reverse breakdown voltage, the SCR starts conduction due to
avalanche phenomena.
 SCR is used for controlling high power circuits, rectification of high power AC.

23. Shockley Diode

 Shockley diode is a four layer PNPN diode. It resembles SCR
but it has no control or gate input.
  Shockley diode tends to stay ‘ON’ once it is turned ‘ON’ & tends to stay ‘OFF’ when it is turned
‘OFF’.
 As we know that the Shockley diode has no gate input so the only way to switch it ‘ON’ is by
applying Forward voltage greater than its breakdown voltage.
 After applying the voltage greater than its breakdown voltage, it will allow the current flow.
 During conduction state, it won’t turn off even if the voltage decreases from its breakdown
voltage.
 To make it switch ‘OFF’, the voltage needs to be sufficiently lower than its breakdown voltage.
24. Point Contact Diode
 Point Contact Diode is also known as Cat
Whisker diode or crystal diode.
 It is a type of diode in which a small point
junction is formed between a metal wire &
N-types semiconductor crystal.
 “cat whisker” is a thin springy wire made
of Phosphorus bronze or tungsten.
 It makes a point contact junction with an N-
type semiconductor, Hence the name point-contact diode.
 As the junction formed is very small so the junction capacitance of point contact diode is very low.
 Thus, there is very low charge storage capacity, which makes it a fast switching device.
 During manufacturing, passing a relatively large current through the cat whisker wire results in
the formation of small a P-region upon the N-type semiconductor.
 This small junction acts as a P-N junction.
 Point contact diodes are used for low voltage signal & in microwave mixer & detectors.

ADVANTAGES OF DIODES
Advantages of Diodes:
1. Current Control:
o Diodes allow current to flow in only one direction, which makes them ideal for rectification
in AC to DC conversion.
2. Simple Construction:
o Diodes have a straightforward design, making them easy to manufacture and integrate into
electronic circuits.
3. Protection:
o Diodes protect circuits from voltage spikes and reverse polarity, safeguarding sensitive
components from damage.
4. Efficient Switching:
o Some diodes, like Schottky diodes, offer fast switching speeds, making them useful in
high-frequency applications.
5. Low Power Consumption:
o Diodes like LEDs consume low power compared to traditional light sources, making them
energy efficient.
6. Stability:
o Diodes, especially Zener diodes, can stabilize voltage in circuits, providing a regulated
output.

Disadvantages of Diodes:
1. Voltage Drop:
o Diodes have a forward voltage drop (typically 0.7V for silicon diodes, 0.3V for Schottky
diodes), leading to energy loss in circuits.
2. Limited Current Handling:
o Standard diodes can't handle very high currents; special types like power diodes are
required for high-current applications.
 3. Temperature Sensitivity:
o Diodes can be sensitive to temperature changes, which might affect their performance and
cause breakdown at high temperatures.
4. Breakdown in Reverse Bias:
o In some cases, excessive reverse voltage can cause the diode to break down and allow
current to flow, damaging the diode or circuit.
5. Non-linear Behavior:
o Diodes have non-linear voltage-current characteristics, which can complicate circuit design
in certain applications.
6. Limited Functionality:
o Diodes are limited to specific tasks like rectification, switching, and protection, and can’t
perform more complex operations like amplifiers.
Each type of diode has specific use cases that leverage its strengths and limitations in electronic
design.
APPLICATIONS OF DIODES
Diodes are used in various applications in power electronics. The diode is a unidirectional two-
terminal device that only allows flowing the current in one direction and blocks the current in another
direction. Due to this characteristic, the diode is used in the application like;
 Rectifier
 Voltage multiplier circuit
 Over-voltage limiter
 Clipper and clamper circuit
 Reverse current protection circuit
 Digital Logic gates
 It is used in solar panels to avoid the flow of current in a reverse direction and used to bypass the
solar plate.
 It is also used to modulate and demodulate communication signals.