Is it possible for compound semiconductors to exhibit intrinsic behavior? Explain your answer.

Short Answer

Expert verified
Answer: Yes, compound semiconductors can exhibit intrinsic behavior when the combined elements have balanced electrical properties, leading to an equal number of electrons and holes generated due to thermal energy.

Step by step solution

01

Understand compound semiconductors and intrinsic behavior

Compound semiconductors are formed by combining two or more elements from different groups in the periodic table, e.g., gallium arsenide (GaAs), indium phosphide (InP), cadmium telluride (CdTe), etc. These semiconductors may have different electrical properties than elemental semiconductors like silicon (Si) or germanium (Ge). Intrinsic behavior in a semiconductor occurs when there is an equal number of electrons in the conduction band and holes in the valence band due to the material's own thermal energy. This results in the material having equal concentrations of free negatively charged electrons and positive holes.
02

Analyze the possibility of intrinsic behavior in compound semiconductors

Intrinsic behavior can happen in a compound semiconductor if the elements combined have balanced electrical properties, such that the number of electrons and holes remain equal due to the thermal energy. In these cases, the compound semiconductor would exhibit intrinsic behavior, similar to elemental Si or Ge semiconductors.
03

Conclusion

Yes, it is possible for compound semiconductors to exhibit intrinsic behavior. This happens when the combined elements in the compound semiconductor have balanced electrical properties, leading to an equal number of electrons and holes generated due to thermal energy. Overall, for the compound semiconductor to exhibit intrinsic behavior, its constituent elements must have balanced properties, allowing for similar behavior as seen in elemental semiconductors.

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Most popular questions from this chapter

Tin bronze has a composition of \(92 \mathrm{wt} \% \mathrm{Cu}\) and \(8 \mathrm{wt} \% \mathrm{Sn}\), and consists of two phases at room temperature: an \(\alpha\) phase, which is copper containing a very small amount of tin in solid solution, and an \(\epsilon\) phase, which consists of approximately 37 wt \(\%\) Sn. Compute the room temperature conductivity of this alloy given the following data: \begin{tabular}{ccc} \hline \multicolumn{2}{c}{ Electrical } \\ Phase & Resistivity \((\Omega \cdot m)\) & Density \(\left(g / c m^{5}\right)\) \\\ \hline\(\alpha\) & \(1.88 \times 10^{-8}\) & \(8.94\) \\ \(\epsilon\) & \(5.32 \times 10^{-7}\) & \(8.25\) \\ \hline \end{tabular}

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