CHAPTER 10: ELECTRONICS

LECTURE NOTES

P-N JUNCTION AND ITS CHARACTERISTICS:

● P-N junction is developed from a single crystal by introducing donor
impurities on one side and acceptor into the other side.
● The donor ion is represented by a plus (+) sign, because this impurity atom
donates an electron, hence it becomes a positive ion.
● The acceptor ion is indicated by a minus (-) sign; because it accepts an
electron hence it becomes a negative ion.

● Due to density difference across the junction the holes initially diffuse
towards N-side, where the number of holes is lesser. Similarly, electron
diffuse to P-side of junction.
● Migration of electrons and holes across junction due to concentration
difference is termed diffusion.
● At the junction on both sides a region is formed which is depleted of charge
carriers. This region is called depletion region whose thickness is about 10-6
m.
● An electric field is developed across the junction which is in a direction to
oppose the further diffusion of electrons from N-side.
● The potential developed across the barrier layer is called barrier potential. It
is 0.7 volts for silicon diode and 0.3 volts for germanium diode.
● When no external source is connected to diode, it is called unbiased.

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 ● It has two electrodes hence it is called diode.

FORWARD BIASED P-N JUNCTION

When the voltage is applied to the P-N junction diode in such a way that the
positive terminal of the battery is connected to the p-type semiconductor and the
negative terminal of the battery is connected to the n-type semiconductor, the diode
is said to be forward biased.

REVERSE BIASED P-N JUNCTION

When the voltage is applied to the P-N junction diode in such a way that the
positive terminal of the battery is connected to the n-type semiconductor and the
negative terminal of the battery is connected to the p-type semiconductor, the diode
is said to be reverse biased.

Rectification:
Conversion of alternating current into direct current is called rectification.
● The P-N junction diode acts like a rectifier by converting the AC current into

DC current.

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 ● There are two very common types of rectification.

Half-wave rectification (HWR)

● A half wave rectifier is a type of rectifier which converts the positive half
cycle (positive current) of the input signal into pulsating DC (Direct Current)
output signal.
Or
● A half wave rectifier is a type of rectifier which allows only half cycle
(either positive half cycle or negative half cycle) of the input AC signal
while the another half cycle is blocked.
● One diode is used to construct the half wave rectifier.
● The DC current produced by a basic rectifier (half wave rectifier) is not a
pure DC current. It is a pulsating DC current.

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 ● The pulsating DC current starts from zero and grows to the maximum
forward current (peak level), and decreases to zero. However, the pulsating
DC current does not change its direction periodically like AC current.
● The half wave rectifier is made up of an AC source, transformer
(step-down), diode, and resistor (load). The diode is placed between the
transformer and resistor (load).

● In half wave rectifier, we generally use a step-down transformer because the

voltage needed for the diode is very small.
● Applying a large AC voltage without using transformer will permanently
destroy the diode.
● A resistor restricts the current flow to a certain level.

Positive half wave rectifier

● The low AC voltage produced by the step-down transformer is directly
applied to the diode.

● When low AC voltage is applied to the diode (D), during the positive half
cycle of the signal, the diode is forward biased and allows electric current
whereas, during the negative half cycle, the diode is reverse biased and
blocks electric current.

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Negative half wave rectifier:
● The construction and working of negative half wave rectifier is almost
similar to the positive half wave rectifier. The only thing we change here is
the direction of a diode.
● Unlike the positive half wave rectifier, the negative half wave rectifier
allows electric current during the negative half-cycle of input AC signal and
blocks electric current during the positive half-cycle of the input AC signal.

● During the negative half cycle, the diode is forward biased and during the
positive half cycle the diode is reverse biased, so the negative half wave
rectifier allows electric current only during the negative half cycle.
Half wave rectifier with capacitor filter:
● A filter converts the pulsating direct current into pure direct current. In half
wave rectifiers, a capacitor is used as a filter to convert the pulsating DC to
pure DC.

Ripple factor:
● In the output pulsating DC signal, we find ripples. These ripples in the
output DC signal can be reduced by using filters such capacitors
● In order to measure how much ripples are there in the output DC signal we
use a factor known as ripple factor. The ripple factor is denoted by γ.

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 ● The ripple factor tells us the amount of ripples present in the output DC
signal. A large ripple factor indicates a high pulsating DC signal while a low
ripple factor indicates a low pulsating DC signal.
𝑟𝑚𝑠 𝑣𝑎𝑙𝑢𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝐴𝐶 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑜𝑛𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑜𝑢𝑡𝑝𝑢𝑡 𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑡𝑎𝑔𝑒
● 𝑅𝑖𝑝𝑝𝑙𝑒𝑠 𝑓𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟 = 𝐷𝐶 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑜𝑛𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑜𝑢𝑡𝑝𝑢𝑡 𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑡𝑎𝑔𝑒

● 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑟𝑖𝑝𝑝𝑙𝑒 𝑓𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑜𝑟 𝑖𝑠 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑎𝑠

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γ= ( )
𝑉𝑟𝑚𝑠
𝑉𝐷𝐶
− 1 = 1. 21

● The high ripples in the half wave rectifier can be reduced by using filters.
● For upper half or lower half is rectified.
● %η =
𝑜𝑢𝑡𝑝𝑢𝑡 𝑝𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝐷𝐶
𝑖𝑛𝑝𝑢𝑡 𝑝𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝐴𝐶
×100

● The rectifier efficiency of a half wave rectifier is 40.6%

● Can be used for charging battery.
● Output frequency is equal to input frequency.
𝑉0
● 𝑉𝑒𝑣 = 𝑉𝐷𝐶 = π
𝑉0
● 𝑉𝑟𝑚𝑠 = 2

Drawbacks
● More ripples in the output wave form.
● Average value of the output DC signal drops.
Full wave Rectification (FWR):
● A type of rectifier which coverts the full AC input signal (positive half cycle
and negative half cycle) to pulsating DC output signal.
● Unlike the half wave rectifier, the input signal is not wasted in full wave
rectifier.
● The efficiency of full wave rectifier is high as compared to the half wave
rectifier.

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Center Tapped Full Wave Rectifier:
● A center tapped full wave rectifier is a type of rectifier which uses a center
tapped transformer and two diodes to convert the complete AC signal into
DC signal.
● The center tapped full wave rectifier is made up of an AC source, a center
tapped transformer, two diodes, and a load resistor.

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 ● The AC source is connected to the primary winding of the center tapped
transformer. A center tap (additional wire) connected at the exact middle of
the the secondary winding divides the input voltage into two parts.
● The upper part of the secondary winding is connected to the diode Dy and
the lower part of the secondary winding is connected to the diode D2. Both
diode D1 and diode D2 are connected to a common load R₁, with the help of a
center tap transformer.
● The center tap is generally considered as the ground point or the
zero-voltage reference point.

Working of Center Tapped Full Wave Rectifier:

● When input AC voltage is applied, the secondary winding of the center
tapped transformer divides this input AC voltage into two parts: positive and
negative.
● During the positive half cycle of the input AC signal, terminal A become
positive, terminal B become negative and center tap is grounded (zero volts).
The positive terminal A is connected to the p-side of the diode D1 and the
negative terminal B is connected to the n-side of the diode D1. So the diode
D1 is forward biased during the positive half cycle and allows electric
current through it.

● On the other hand, the negative terminal B is connected to the p-side of the
diode D₂ and the positive terminal A is connected to the n-side of the diode

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 D₂. So the diode D₂ is reverse biased during the positive half cycle and does
not allow electric current through it.

● The diode D1 supplies DC current to the load RL. The DC current produced
at the load RL will return to the secondary winding through a center tap.

● During the negative half cycle of the input AC signal, terminal A become
negative, terminal B become positive and center tap is grounded (zero volts).

● The negative terminal A is connected to the p-side of the diode D1 and the
positive terminal B is connected to the n-side of the diode D₁.

● So, the diode D₁ is reverse biased during the negative half cycle and does not
allow electric current through it.
● On the other hand, the positive terminal B is connected to the p-side of the
diode D₂ and the negative terminal A is connected to the n-side of the diode
D2. So the diode D₂ is forward biased during the negative half cycle and
allows electric current through it.

● Thus, the diode D₁ allows electric current during the positive half cycle and
diode D2 allows electric current during the negative half cycle of the input
AC signal. As a result, both half cycles (positive and negative) of the input
AC signal are allowed. So the output DC voltage is almost equal to the input
AC voltage.

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The output waveform of the full wave rectifier is shown in the below figure:

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 Ripple Factor:

● Ripple factor is defined as the ratio of ripple voltage to the pure DC voltage.
● The ripple factor is given by
2
γ= ( ) 𝑉𝑟𝑚𝑠
𝑉𝐷𝐶
− 1 = 0. 48

𝑜𝑢𝑡𝑝𝑢𝑡 𝑝𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝐷𝐶
● %η = 𝑖𝑛𝑝𝑢𝑡 𝑝𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝐴𝐶
×100

● The rectifier efficiency of a full wave rectifier is 81.2%.

2𝑉0
● 𝑉𝑒𝑣 = π
𝑉0
● 𝑉𝑟𝑚𝑠 =
2
● The rectifier efficiency of a full wave rectifier is twice that of the half wave
rectifier. So
the full wave rectifier is more efficient than a half wave rectifier.
Advantages of full wave rectifier with center tapped transformer:
● Full wave rectifier has high rectifier efficiency than the half wave
rectifier.
● No signal is wasted in a full wave rectifier.
● Low power loss
● The output DC signal in full wave rectifier has fewer ripples than the
half wave rectifier
Disadvantage of full wave rectifier with center tapped transformer:
● The center tapped transformers are expensive and occupy a large space.
● The full wave rectifier rectifies both positive and negative half cycles, the
DC signal obtained at the output still contains some ripples. To reduce these
ripples at the output, we use a filter.

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 ● The filter is an electronic device that converts the pulsating Direct Current
into pure Direct Current.

Bridge Rectifier:
● Four diodes are used.
● Two diodes remain ON (FWD Biased) in each half of the input cycle while
other two remains off (Reverse Biased) in the same half of the cycle.
● Output frequency is twice of input frequency.

Summary:
If input wave has “T” Time period then
0 ~ T/2 D1 & D3 = On and D2 & D4 – Off

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T/2 ~ T D1 & D3 = Off and D2 & D4 – On

Example: If a full wave rectifier circuit is operating from 50 Hz mains, the

fundamental frequency in the ripple will be
A. 50 Hz
B. 70.7 Hz
C. 100 Hz
D. 25 Hz
Solution: C.
In full wave rectifier, the fundamental frequency in ripple is twice that of input
frequency.

Advantages:
● Very inexpensive method of rectification.
● Average values do not drop significantly.
● Lesser ripples are there in the signal compared to Half Wave Rectification.

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Example: The electrical circuit used to get smooth DC output from a rectifier
circuit is called
A. Filter
B. Oscillator
C. Logic gates
D. Amplifier
Solution: A. 'Filter' filters out the fluctuations in the output of the rectifier.

Specially Designed P-N Junctions: These junctions harness the properties of

semiconductors to perform specific functions related to light and electricity:
1. Light Emitting Diode (LED):
Material: Made from semiconductors like gallium arsenide (GaAs) or gallium
arsenide phosphide (GaAsP).
Function: Converts electrical energy into light. When current flows through the
junction, electrons and holes recombine, releasing energy in the form of photons
(light).

2. Photodiode:
Function: Detects light and converts it into electrical current. Operates in reverse
bias.
Features: Fast response time (nanoseconds), making it ideal for high-speed
applications.
Applications:
● Detecting visible and invisible light spectrum

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 ● Automatic switching systems
● Logic circuits
● Optical communication equipment

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3. Photovoltaic Cell (Solar Cell):
Function: Converts light energy directly into electrical energy. The potential
barrier at the p-n junction drives current through an external circuit when exposed
to light.
Applications: Power generation in various applications like satellites, space
stations, and solar panels.
Image: Photovoltaic Cell (Solar Cell)

Transistor
Function: Amplifies or switches electronic signals and electrical power. Works as
a semiconductor device.
Advantages:
● No heating element required
● Small size and lightweight
● Low power consumption
Types:
NPN Transistor: Composed of two N-type semiconductor materials with a P-type
layer sandwiched in between. Electrons are the majority charge carriers.
PNP Transistor: Composed of two P-type semiconductor materials with an
N-type layer sandwiched in between. Holes are the majority charge carriers.
Operation Modes:

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 ● Active Mode: Used for amplification.
● Saturation Mode: Used for switching (ON state).
● Cut-off Mode: Used for switching (OFF state).

Operational Amplifier (Op-Amp)

Function: High-gain DC coupled amplifier used in various analog circuits.
Characteristics:
● High input impedance: Prevents loading of the input signal source.
● Low output impedance: Allows it to drive low-impedance loads.
● High voltage gain: Amplifies the input voltage significantly.
Applications:
● Amplifiers: Inverting and non-inverting configurations for signal
amplification.
● Comparators: Comparing two voltages and outputting a digital signal
indicating which is larger.
● Filters: Building active filters for signal processing.
● Image: Operational Amplifier (Op-Amp) Symbol

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 Logic Gates:

Function: Building blocks of digital circuits performing basic logical operations.

Types:
OR Gate: Outputs 1 if any of the inputs is 1.
AND Gate: Outputs 1 only if all inputs are 1.
NOT Gate (Inverter): Outputs the opposite logic level of the input.
NAND Gate: Combination of AND and NOT gates. Outputs 0 only if all inputs are
1.
NOR Gate: Combination of OR and NOT gates. Outputs 1 only if all inputs are 0.
XOR Gate (Exclusive OR): Outputs 1 if the inputs are different.
XNOR Gate (Exclusive NOR): Outputs 1 if the inputs are the same.
Buffer: Same input same output.

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