Semiconductors Fundamentals.ppt

Semiconductor Materials * * Professional English in Microelectronics Technology Prior to the invention of the bipolar transistor in 1947, semiconductors were used only as two-terminal devices, such as rectifiers and photodiodes. In the early 1950s, germanium was the major semiconductor material. 在1947年双极型二极管发明之前，半导体通常用做两端器件，如整流器和光电二极管。 在20世纪50年代早期，锗是最主要的半导体材料。 Semiconductor Materials * * Professional English in Microelectronics Technology However, germanium proved unsuitable in many applications because germanium devices exhibited high leakage currents at only moderately elevated temperatures. 尽管如此，在很多应用领域锗被证明并不适用，因为当温度稍微升高时，锗器件便会存在高的漏电流。 Semiconductor Materials * * Professional English in Microelectronics Technology In addition, germanium oxide is water soluble and unsuited for device fabrication. Since the early 1960s silicon has become a practical substitute and has now virtually supplanted germanium as a material for semiconductor fabrication. 此外，氧化锗是水溶的，并且不适合设备制造。 自20世纪60年代早期开始硅便成为一种可行的替代品，并最终取替了锗成为半导体加工的主要材料。 Semiconductor Materials * * Professional English in Microelectronics Technology The main reasons we now use silicon are that silicon devices exhibit much lower leakage currents, and high-quality silicon dioxide can be grown thermally. There is also an economic consideration. Device grade silicon costs much less than any other semiconductor material. 现阶段采用硅的主要原因在于：硅具备很低的漏电流，而且在加热的条件下可生产高质量的二氧化硅。 当然也有经济方面的考虑。 硅成本比任何其他半导体材料要低得多。 Semiconductor Materials * * Professional English in Microelectronics Technology Silicon in the form of silica and silicates comprises 25% of the Earth’s crust, and silicon is second only to oxygen in abundance. At present, silicon is one of the most studied elements in the periodic table; and silicon technology is by far the most advanced among all semiconductor technologies. 硅以硅土和硅酸盐的形式占地壳25%的组成，硅的占有量是仅次于氧。 目前，硅是元素周期表中被最广泛研究的物质； 硅技术研究是所有半导体技术中最先进的。 Semiconductor Materials * * Professional English in Microelectronics