What Is Semiconductor And Its Uses?
Did you know the semiconductor industry is in fact a driving force in the electronic industry?
With the world having reliability on electronic devices, from laptops to smartphones or medical equipment to solar panels, it has semiconductors.
While heavy demand for semiconductors seems to surge, around 50% of the semiconductors in the world are manufactured in Taiwan.
What is a semiconductor?
It is one such material that lies between an insulator and a conductor, basically between a non-metal and a metal. Meaning its potential to pass electric current lies somewhere between that of a metal and a non-metal.
But why do they have such a property that lies in between? That’s because of the unique band structure they possess. The structure is such that there is a band gap between a valence band and a conduction band. That’s the band gap which determines how much energy it may need to pass the electron from valence to conduction band.
The unique thing about the semiconductor is that it only allows a flow of current in certain conditions, which means it can act as an ideal medium to control the flow of events and can be used in day-to-day electronic applications.
Semiconductor devices like diodes, transistors, and integrated circuits are actually made of semiconductors. Ironically the impurities or the dopants added to the semiconductor exhibit the properties that are specific to it.
How are they formed?
The semiconductor is a crystal made of few materials. But if you wondered, how are they formed, you must have been familiar with the concept of electrons and atoms. In an atom, there are 3 subatomic particles, namely proton, neutron, and electron. In our context let’s only keep electrons in mind.
The outermost shell in the atom is generally called a valence shell. If there are any electrons in the valence shell they tend to bond with other atoms around them. And when they bond it is called a covalent bond. Generally in semiconductors, the valence shell will have 4 electrons in it. When other atoms have the same valence, the binding of electrons takes place and that’s how the crystals form. Usually, the semiconductor is made using silicon crystals.
The use of semiconductor
- Electronics
Transistors are one such semiconductor device used in modern circuits. Be it in the microprocessors of the computer to the circuitry of smartphones they play a major role in their ability to switch and amplify electronic signals.
The integrated chips that we have commonly heard of, also known as microchips, utilize the application of semiconductors. The miniaturization of electronics is possible due to the compact arrangement of capacitors, transistors, and resistors in the circuits. Moore’s law has a prediction that conveys if the transistor doubles in the chip for say every two years, it speaks about the progression in semiconductor manufacturing!
- Optoelectronics
In optoelectronic devices such as LEDs, the interaction of both light and electricity is important. They work when the holes and electrons recombine in the band gap of a semiconductor.
The solar cells use the photoelectric effect of the semiconductor to convert light into electricity. That indeed has helped in the application of supplying renewable yet sustainable energy to houses and businesses.
- Sensing
The semiconductors have the property to sense as they can respond to the changes in the environment. In the new-aged cars, you can see the semiconductor controls the airbag, even the quality of the air, and the efficiency of the engine.
Have you observed the MRI Scanners or the X-ray machines that give an image? It works because of the application of semiconductors wherein it has the ability to convert the radiation into electrical energy which then can be converted into the medical image.
You know the use of semiconductors in electronic devices has got vast and the dependency on it is huge! Looking at the fact that the manufacturing of the semiconductors depends on other materials such as silicon, might cause constraints with respect to the vulnerabilities of the supply and chain. At those times, it may ask for the need to look out for other alternative materials to manufacture or invent new methods to fabricate.
Either way, the semiconductor’s crucial application of being able to control its electrical conductivity and an exhibition of various other specific properties, makes it a go to material.
