Semiconductor
hideA semiconductor is a material that has a resistivity value between that of a conductor and an insulator. The conductivity of a semiconductor material can be varied under an external electrical field. Devices made from semiconductor materials are the foundation of modern electronics, including radio, computers, telephones, and many other devices. Semiconductor devices include the transistor, solar cells, many kinds of diodes including the light-emitting diode, the silicon controlled rectifier, and digital and analog integrated circuits. Solar photovoltaic panels are large semiconductor devices that directly convert light energy into electrical energy. In a metallic conductor, current is carried by the flow of electrons. In semiconductors, current can be carried either by the flow of electrons or by the flow of positively-charged "holes" in the electron structure of the material.
Silicon is used to create most semiconductors commercially. Dozens of other materials are used, including germanium, gallium arsenide, and silicon carbide. A pure semiconductor is often called an “intrinsic” semiconductor. The conductivity, or ability to conduct, of semiconductor material can be drastically changed by adding other elements, called “impurities” to the melted intrinsic material and then allowing the melt to solidify into a new and different crystal. This process is called "doping".
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News tagged with semiconductor
Scientists synthesize graphene-like material: Polymer with honeycomb structure
Nanotechnology / Nanomaterials
Nov 19, 2009 |
4.7 / 5 (11) |
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Two-dimensional carbon layers, so-called graphenes, are regarded as a possible substitute for silicon in the semiconductor industry. The electronic properties of these layers can be varied by "building in" ...
Small nanoparticles bring big improvement to medical imaging
Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine
Nov 18, 2009 |
5 / 5 (3) |
0
If you're watching the complex processes in a living cell, it is easy to miss something important—especially if you are watching changes that take a long time to unfold and require high-spatial-resolution ...
Toshiba develops molecular photoresist technology for EUV lithography
Nov 17, 2009 |
2.5 / 5 (11) |
1
Toshiba Corporation today announced that it has developed a high resolution photoresist (photo-sensitive film) essential for future application of EUV (extreme ultraviolet) lithography in semiconductor fabrication, ...
Semiconductor revenue to fall 11 percent: Gartner
Nov 16, 2009 |
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Worldwide semiconductor revenue is expected to decline by more than 11 percent in 2009 over last year, less than previously forecast, market research firm Gartner said Monday.
Building a more versatile laser
Nov 16, 2009 |
4.5 / 5 (19) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- One of the drawbacks associated with using semiconductor lasers is that many of them can only produce a beam of a single wavelength, and can only send that beam in one direction at a time. ...
Measuring Electron Orbitals
Nov 16, 2009 |
5 / 5 (8) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- For the first time, it has been possible to measure electron density in individual molecular states using what is known as the photoelectric effect. Now published in Science, this method repres ...
Expert advises automakers to take it slow on road to recovery
Nov 13, 2009 |
2 / 5 (1) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Supply chain expert Panos Kouvelis says it's time for the auto industry to go through a period of capacity rationalization.
Understanding mechanical properties of silicon nanowires paves way for nanodevices
Nanotechnology / Nanomaterials
Nov 11, 2009 |
3.3 / 5 (3) |
0
Silicon nanowires are attracting significant attention from the electronics industry due to the drive for ever-smaller electronic devices, from cell phones to computers. The operation of these future devices, ...
Research helps overcome barrier for organic electronics
Nanotechnology / Nanomaterials
Nov 10, 2009 |
4.9 / 5 (10) |
0
(PhysOrg.com) -- Electronic devices can't work well unless all of the transistors, or switches, within them allow electrical current to flow easily when they are turned on. A team of engineers has determined ...
China chip maker to pay $200 mln to settle TSMC claims
Nov 10, 2009 |
1 / 5 (1) |
0
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) said Tuesday China's top chip maker will pay it 200 million US dollars cash after they settled a long-running dispute over alleged theft of trade secrets.
NXP Sets New Benchmarks for LED Drivers
Nov 05, 2009 |
4 / 5 (1) |
0
NXP Semiconductors today announced three major developments in its portfolio of mains connected LED driver solutions: the success of its SSL2101 LED driver IC in matching LED lifetimes in an accelerated lifetime test; the ...
Researchers create all-electric spintronics
Oct 27, 2009 |
5 / 5 (21) |
3
A multidisciplinary team of UC researchers is the first to find an innovative and novel way to control an electron's spin orientation using purely electrical means.
SKorea's Hynix finally swings to profit
Oct 23, 2009 |
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South Korea's Hynix Semiconductor, the world's second largest memory chip maker, Friday announced a profit for the third quarter after seven straight quarters of losses.
ARM Introduces New Cortex-A5 Power-Efficient and Cost-Effective Multicore Processor
Oct 21, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- ARM today announces the launch of the ARM Cortex-A5 MPCore processor, the smallest, lowest power ARM multicore processor capable of delivering the Internet to the widest possible range of ...
Physicist wins Packard Fellowship
Oct 16, 2009 |
2.3 / 5 (3) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- MIT physicist Pablo Jarillo-Herrero has won a 2009 David and Lucile Packard Fellowship, an award he will use to study a new class of materials that could have applications in the semiconductor ...
