Diode

Circuits
EEE/BME2101 – ELECTRONIC CIRCUITS
29 August 2018 FACULTY OF APPLIED SCIENCES AND
TECHNOLOGY
 Lecture Outline
 The P-N Junction
 Diode Operation and I-V Characteristics
 Regions of Operation
 Diodes Types
 Zener, Schottky, Variable Capacitance
 Single Diode Circuits
 Multi-diode Circuits
 What is a Diode?
 A diode is an electronic
device that allows current
to flow in only one
direction. This ability to
conduct in one direction
is called asymmetric
conductance
 Current flows from the
Anode (positive terminal Fig.1 Diode Symbols
or P-side) to the Cathode
(negative
Most diodesterminal or N- today are made of semi-
on the market
side)
conductor materials such as Silicon (Si), Germanium
(Ge), and consist of a p-n junction.
The P-N
Junction
 The P-N Junction
 P-N junctions are formed by joining n-type and p-type
semiconductor materials. You make an n-type
semiconductor material by doping (adding impurities)
to a pure semi-conductor atom (e.g. Si) with Group V
elements such as Antimony or Phosphorous, and a
P-type semiconductor material by doping another Si
atom with a Group III element such as Boron or
Aluminium. The n-material will thus have excess
electrons (-ve charge) and the p-material will have excess
holes (+ve charge).
 Joining n-type and p-type material causes the excess
electrons in the n-type material to diffuse to the p-type
side, and excess holes from the p-type material to diffuse
to the n-type side. Movement of electrons to the p-type
side exposes positive ion holes in the n-type side while
 The P-N Junction
Metallurgical Junction:
The interface where the
p-type and n-type
materials meet.
Space Charge Region:
Also called the depletion
region, it includes the
net positively and
Steady State: When no
negatively charged
external voltage source
regions. Therefore, it
is connected to the junction,
does not have any free
diffusion of electrons and
carriers.
holes balance each other
out. The net effect is a Na & Nd: Represent the
 Biasing Diodes
 Biasing means applying a voltage across the p-n
junction. In electronics, a p-n junction is of little
practical use if it is not biased.
 There are two operating regions and three possible
“biasing” conditions for a standard junction
diode, and these are:
 Zero Bias: This is an unbiased state where no
external voltage potential is applied to the P-N
junction diode
 Reverse Bias: The negative terminal of the
voltage source is connected to the p-side of the
material, and the positive terminal connected to
 Reverse Biasing

Vapplied <
0

Fig. 3: Increase in depletion layer from reverse biasing

When a diode is connected to a battery as shown above,
holes in the p-region and electrons in the n-region are forced
away from the centre. This results in a wider depletion region
around the p-n junction. This region will then have an
insulative quality that prevents current from flowing through
 Forward Biasing

Vapplied >
0

Fig.4: Reduction in depletion layer from forward biasing

When a diode is connected to a battery as shown above,
electrons from the n-side and holes from the p-side are forced
toward the center (p-n junction) by the electrical field supplied
by the battery. This reduces the depletion layer enough for
electrons to drift across, and current passes through the diode.
When a diode is arranged in this way, it is said to be forward-
 I-V Characteristics of
Diodes
 This is the most important characteristic of a diode.
Unlike resistors which have a linear relationship
between I & V (Ohm’s Law V = IR), the I-V
characteristics
Plenabeb of a diode are non-linear.
Hgytgbt
Fgthyt
ghtntuyoykyk

Fig.5: Typical I-V

characteristic curve of a
diode
 Ideal vs. Real Diode
We can model I-V characteristics for both an ideal diode
and for a real diode. Note that in an ideal case,
current starts to flow as soon
as a voltage is applied to the
junction. However, in reality, a
minimum voltage (0.7 volts in
the graph) is required to make
the depletion layer thin
enough for electrons to flow.
This minimum applied voltage
is called the Barrier
Potential.

Barrier potential voltage:

Fig.6: Diode ideal and real
Minimum voltage at which
characteristics
 Ideal Diode Equation
 The simple ideal diode equation is given by:

 This equation will be used often to solve diode circuit

problems. You do not need to memorize it as it will
be provided in a test or exam
 Useful Terms &
Summary
 Potential barrier: This is the minimum voltage beyond which
electrons start flowing through the depletion layer. It is approximately
0.5V to 0.7V for silicon diodes and roughly 0.3V for germanium diodes
 Semiconductors contain 2 types of mobile charge carriers, Holes (+ve)
and Electrons (-ve).
 A semiconductor may be doped with donor impurities such as Antimony
(N-type doping), so that it contains mobile charges which are
primarily electrons.
 A semiconductor may be doped with acceptor impurities such as Boron
(P-type doping), so that it contains mobile charges which are mainly
holes.
 The junction region has no charge carriers and it is called the
depletion region.
 The thickness of the depletion region varies with the applied voltage.
 When a diode is Zero Biased no external energy source is applied;
When it is Forward Biased the thickness of the depletion region
Diode Types
 Diode Types: Zener
Also called the “reverse diode”, it is specially designed to operate under
reverse conditions. It operates just like a normal p-n junction diode in forward
bias mode, however, in the reverse bias mode, as soon as the applied voltage
reaches a pre-determined value, the zener
When thediode begins
reverse to applied
voltage conductacross
in thea
reverse direction. zener diode exceeds the rated voltage of the
device, a process called Avalanche
Breakdown occurs in the depletion layer
and a current starts to flow through the
diode to limit this increase in voltage.
The current now flowing through the diode
increases to a maximum value, which
remains fairly constant over a wide range of
reverse voltages.
The voltage point at which the voltage
across a zener diode becomes stable is the
Zener Voltage (Vz) – it can range from less
than one volt to a few hundred volts.
Fig.7: Zener diode symbol and I-V
curve Avalanche Breakdown: A phenomenon
that occurs when carriers in the depletion
 Diode Types: Schottky
 Named after German physicist Walter
H. Schottky, it is also known as the hot
carrier diode. A junction is formed
Fig.8: Schematic of a
between a semiconductor and a
Schottky diode
metal, thus creating a Schottky Common Schottky diode
barrier. The n-type semiconductor acts applications
as the cathode and the metal acts as • Voltage clamping and
the anode of the diode. This Schottky prevention of transistor
saturation: since they have a
barrier results in both a low forward higher current density
voltage drop and very fast switching. • Applications that are
 There is always a small voltage drop sensitive to efficiency (e.g.
photovoltaic systems to
across diode terminals when current
prevent batteries from
flows through it. A normal diode will discharging through the solar
have a voltage drop between 0.6 - panels at night): since they
1.7V, while a Schottky diode have a low forward voltage
drop hence less energy is
 Diode Types: Variable
Capacitance
 Also denoted as “varicap”, “varactor”, “tuning diode”
 This is a diode with a variable capacitance, which is a
function of the voltage that is applied on its terminals.
They are operated as reverse-biased, and therefore no
current flows. However, since the thickness of the
depletion zone varies with the applied voltage, the
capacitance of the diode can also be made to vary.
 Applications: Radio Frequency (RF) industry – in radio,
cellular, wireless receivers. RF tuners such as those in
television sets to electronically tune to different stations,
Frequency Synthesizers, Parametric Amplifiers and
Oscillators Fig. 9: Schematic of a
 Diode Types: Others
 Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs): LEDs have a large bandgap
so that the movement of carriers across the depletion region
emits photons of light. Lower bandgap LEDs emit infrared
radiation, while those with higher bandgap energy emit
visible light. Many traffic lights now use LEDs because they
are extremely bright and last longer than regular bulbs for a
relatively low cost.
 Shockley Diodes: This is a four-layer diode (p-n-p-n) while
other diodes are normally made with only two layers (p-n).
They are generally used to control the average power
delivered to a load.
 Photodiodes: While LEDs emit light, photodiodes are
sensitive to received light. They are constructed so that their
p-n junction can be exposed to the outside through a clear
window or lens. In photoconductive mode, the saturation
current increases in proportion to the intensity of the received
 Single Diode Circuits
The simplest diode circuit can be modelled as a voltage source
VDD, diode, and resistor connected in series as shown in the figure
below:
Assume that the diode is forward
biased, using Kirchoff’s Voltage Laws:
VDD = IR + VD -------- (Eqn.1)
From the characteristic equation of a
diode which is given by:
------- (Eqn.2)

Assuming that n, Is, VT are known, we

can solve for VD and I by substituting
Eqn.2 into Eqn.1

These 3 equations will be used to solve diode circuit problems – there

-------
are no simple short (Eqn.3) In an exam, these will be provided so
cut equations!
 Solving Single Diode
Circuits
Different ways of solving diode circuit
problems:
 Graphical Analysis (using the Load
Line)
 Numerical Methods e.g. MatLab, Mathcad,
etc.
 Simulation Packages e.g. SPICE, SimuLink,
etc.

 Load Line
Analysis
 Recall Eqn.1, when re-arranged gives the linear equation
(straight line):

Fig.10: Diode Fig.11: Load line (from Eqn.1)

characteristic
Plotting Fig.10 and Fig.11 on the
same graph gives the curve in
Fig.12. The point where these two
curves meet is called the
Operating Point (Q point) and it
is the solution to the simultaneous
equations Eqn.1 and Eqn.2. This
Fig.12: Operating point method is useful for small circuits
curve but impractical for larger circuits
 Load Line Analysis
Reading Homework
Think and read about what happens to the load line
curves when:
 The voltage VDD increases?

 The resistance R increases?

Single Diode Exercise

Answer: VNL ~ 0.725 V

 Multi-diode Circuits
 Complex multi-diode circuits cannot be easily solved by the Load
Line method, but we can perform hand analysis to predict their
operation by using simplified
Solving models.
Two Diode Circuits
Consider the circuit containing
two diodes in Fig. 3.33, which is
redrawn in Fig. 3.34. For
simplicity, the positive and
negative voltage sources have
been replaced with +15 V written
at node C and −10 V at node F.
We often use this “shorthand”
representation to help avoid
clutter in circuit diagrams as they
become more complex. Such
representations should always be
interpreted to mean that a
 Multi-diode Circuits
Problem: Find the Q-points for both diodes D1 and D2
Solution:
The unknowns are (ID1, VD1) and (ID2,
VD2)
 With 2 diodes, there will be four
potential models for the circuit
corresponding to the 4 diode states in
Table 1.
 We must try to use some intuition to
make a choice of states. It appears
that the +15V source will try to force
a current in the positive direction
through both diodes D1 and D2; the
−10V source will also try to force a
current through D2 in the positive
Table 1: direction.
Possible  A reasonable initial choice for this
diode states circuit therefore, is to assume that
 Multi-diode Circuits
Problem: Find the Q-points for both diodes D1 and D2
Solution(cont’d):
Iteration1: The voltage at node D is
zero due to the short circuit of diode D1,
so the currents I1 and ID2 can be written
directly using Ohm’s law:

Checking the Results: The calculated

Q-points are (−0.5 mA, 0 V) and (2.0
mA, 0 V). The result ID2 > 0 is consistent
with D2 being on, but ID1 < 0 is not
Table 1: allowed by the diode.
Possible diode Therefore, our assumed state (D1 on, D2
states on) must be incorrect, so we must
 Multi-diode Circuits
Problem: Find the Q-points for both diodes D1 and D2
Solution(cont’d):
Iteration2: Because the current in D2
was valid but that in D1 was invalid, an
appropriate second guess
would be D1 off and D2 on. Note,
however, that there is no guarantee that
this choice will in fact be correct.
Analysis of the new circuit in Fig. 3.36
proceeds as follows. Since ID1 is now
assumed to be zero, ID2 = I1 and an
equation can be written for I1:

Checking Results: The Q-points of the two diodes are now given by
D1(Off): (0mA, −1.67V) and D2(On): (1.67mA, 0V). Both points are
consistent with the assumed states of the diodes, so we have found the
 Multi-diode Circuits
 Discussion: In the worst case, we would have to
perform four analyses (one for each combination in
the states table) to find the correct answer. As our
understanding of diode circuits matures, we should
be able to eliminate most of the unlikely possibilities.

 Exercise: Now find the Q-points for the two diodes if

the value of the 5 kΩ resistor is changed to 10 kΩ.
 Answers: D1(0.50 mA, 0 V) and D2(1.00 mA, 0 V)
Multi-diode Circuits
Solving Three Diode Circuits
Problem: Find the Q-points for
the three diodes in the figure.
Unknowns are: (ID1, VD1), (ID2, VD2),
(ID3, VD3). Use the constant voltage
drop model for the diodes.

Solution: With three diodes, there

are eight possibilities (Table2). For
this circuit, it appears that the
+10V supply will tend to forward-
bias D1 and D2, and the −10V
supply will tend to forward-bias D2
and D3. The −20V supply will also
Table2: The 8
possible states
try to forward-bias D1, so our
(from 2no.diodes) initial circuit model will assume
that all three diodes are on.
 Multi-diode Circuits
Useful Tips for Solving Multi-diode
Circuits
 Remember: each diode can be ON or OFF
 A circuit with N diodes will have 2N states
 The assumption/combination of states that
works for ALL diodes (consistent with KVL &
KCL or the Diode ON/OFF rules) will be the
solution
 Diode ON implies a short circuit: Current (ID)
is non-zero and the Voltage (VD) = 0V for an
ideal diode.
 Note: For a real Si diode, Voltage = 0.7V (i.e
the barrier potential voltage)