Aim
The course extends the material covered in the course Thermodynamics and Electronic Materials - or Device Physics - to provide a broader and deeper understanding of Solid State Physics which is essential for applications. It also develops the basic physical principles that are needed to understand semiconductor devices and their operation, including their role in simple electronic applications.

Knowledge and understanding
For a passing grade the student must

• be able to account for the models and approximations which are introduced in going from atoms to devices

• be able to account for the operation of basic electronic devices - both with respect to the underlying physics as well as to their significance within electronic circuits

• be able to analyse devices using computer simulations

Skills and abilities
For a passing grade the student must

• be able to explain and discuss the operation of simple circuits such as logical gates

• be able to relate the performance of devices to material parameters

• be able to understand and suggest solutions to the problems that arise when device size is scaled down

• be able to give an oral account, using scientifically relevant language, of the results of the computer project which is done independently

• be able to analyse and summarise the results obtained during laboratory work and computer simulations in written reports, and further to suggest how a device with a prescribed performance could be constructed

Contents
Crystal structure and structure determination. Binding and lattice vibrations. Electronic structure.
Physics of semiconductors: intrinsic and extrinsic semiconductors, charge carrier concentrations and transport phenomena.
Generation, recombination, injection and transport of non-equilibrium carriers.
Surface states, contacts and photoconductivity.
Electrical and optical properties of the pn junction and the bipolar transistor.
Unipolar devices: metal-semiconductor junction and contacts, MESFET and MOSFET. Intergrated circuits.

Literature
Sze, S.M: Semiconductor Devices, Physics and Technology, 2nd Ed., John Wiley & Sons, 2002. Hand-out material and laboratory instructions.