Semiconductor physics and device principles

Summary

The course introduces the fundamental principles of semiconductor devices used for information processing and storage. It covers the basics of the physics of device operation, material aspects, design, and essential device characteristics, while also highlighting trends driven by modern applications

Content

Keywords

semiconductors, insulators, silicon, dopants, donors, acceptors, electrons, holes, energy bands, carrier mobility, p-n junctions, interfaces, diodes, depletion layers, inversion layers, charge drift, charge diffusion, tunnel breakdown, avalanche breakdown, transistors, MOS structiures, MOSFET, source, drain, gate, transfer characteristics, sub-threshold slope, III-V compound semiconductors, high-mobility transistors, 2D semiconductors, non-volatile memories, hi-k dielectrics

Learning Prerequisites

Required courses

General physics: electricity and magnetism

Learning Outcomes

By the end of the course, the student must be able to:

• Predict - Predict electronic properties of materials and devices
• Estimate - Evaluate quantitatively / semiquantitatively characteristics of materials and devices
• Design - Understand principles and limitations of semiconductor devices and key considerations for their design

Expected student activities

Attendance of lectures, doing exercises during class and at home, reading written material, discussion in class, reading and analyzing supplemental materials

Assessment methods

written midterm test and written exam

Resources

Bibliography

1. Y. Taur and T.H. Ning, Fundamentals of Modern VLSI Devices, Cambridge University Press, 3rd edition 2021

2. F. Bonani and  G. Piccinini, Electronic devices, CLUT, 2019

Notes/Handbook

lecture handouts and exercise solutions on Moodle

Prerequisite for

Semiconductor devices I

Semiconductor devices II

Nanoelectronics

Fundamentals of VLSI design