Who invented the pn junction

So lets begin! The story of invention revolves around the perseverance of an American Physicist Russel. Russel Ohl aka R. In , when the world was fully dependent on Vacuum Tubes for the times innovations like Radio, Bell Laboratories was on a mission to find an alternative to vacuum tubes.

Russel Ohl was not very fond of this idea! He was not ready to give up his research on crystals and he continued the research on crystals by getting specials permission from Bell Lab seniors. Russel was a material researcher who specialized research on the behavior of crystals under different conditions.

Silicon was one his study subjects. All the researches conducted on crystals at Bell Labs were focused on achieving rectification. Russel believed this was because of the impurities present in Silicon crystal and he believed in achieving results if he can make the Si crystal more pure. Believing on his idea of purifying the crystal, he continued on the same and finally achieved Most of the silicon samples at The story of PN Junction also has one!

Semiconductors behave in a different manner. The atoms in the crystals of semiconductors form a lattice in which outer electrons are bound by forces of a chemical nature. In pure form, semiconductors are like dielectrics: they transmit current poorly or not at all. However, as soon as a small amount of atoms of certain elements admixtures is added to the crystal lattice, their behavior changes dramatically. In this way, a deficit of electrons occurs, and the semiconductor becomes positively charged.

Under the appropriate conditions, semiconductors can transmit electric current. However, as distinct from metals, they transmit it in dual manner. Electrons act as carriers of charge in semiconductors of this type. However, when one hole is filled in, another is created next to it - the one abandoned by the electron. In this manner, holes generate a flow of positive charge directed opposite to the movement of electrons. By introducing admixtures to germanium or silicon crystals, it is possible to create semiconductor materials possessing desirable electric properties.

Please use latest browser to ensure the best performance on ROHM website. Rohm Breadcrumb. What is a diode? Before the Vacuum Tube Rectifying properties and the Edison effect were discovered in the two-pole vacuum tube in From Germanium to Silicon The first primitive diodes, like the selenium rectifier or crystal detectors, used iron pyrites and galena as well as other natural copper oxides polycrystalline semiconductors. In Other Words, a Diode is a Valve!

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