Semiconductor Technology, 12 credits

Main field of study

Course level

Advancement level

Course offered for

• Electronics Design Engineering, M Sc in Engineering

Entry requirements

Note: Admission requirements for non-programme students usually also include admission requirements for the programme and threshold requirements for progression within the programme, or corresponding.

Prerequisites

Intended learning outcomes

The aim of the course is to present the fundamental principle of semiconductor devices and how models of devices can be created from this understanding. How the semiconductor devices are fabricated? Basic unit processes will be presented. The students get the basic knowledge that is necessary to understand, work and produce integrated circuits and optoelectronics. After this course the student should

• Describe manufacturing steps, lithography, oxidation, metallization, and etching.
• Integrate the manufacturing steps for manufacturing of bipolar transistors, MOSFET, CMOS and MEMS.
• Explain the terms, band gap, energy level, mobility, effective mass, charge generation and recombination, doping, drift, diffusion, equilibrium and steady state.
• •Apply relations between band gap, energy level, mobility, effective mass, charge generation and recombination, doping, drift, diffusion, conductivity, current density, temperature and illumination in semiconductors.
• Calculate and determine the material parameters (band gap, doping, level, carrier lifetime, diffusion length) from electrical characteristics of semiconductor devices.
• Design pn-junctions, Schottky diodes, bipolar transistor, MOSFET, and pn-solar cells having given characteristics.
• Design pn-junctions, Schottky diodes, bipolar transistor, and MOSFET.

Course content

Basic semiconductor physics, concept and mechanisms such as band diagram, valence- and conduction band, Fermi level, Fermi-Dirac statistics, band gap, effective mass, drift, diffusion, doping, intrinsic, extrinsic, electron-hole pair, charge generation and recombination, minority carriers, majority carriers etc. will be discussed thoroughly. Function and modelling of pn-junctions, contact potential, depletion region, and different break down mechanisms for pn-junctions will be explained. Functions and I-V characteristics of some other devices such as MOSFET and bipolar transistors will also be discussed. Basic unit processes such as ion implantation, diffusion, thermal oxidation, annealing, deposition processes such as evaporation, sputtering, CVD, epitaxial growth, fabrication processes such as optical and non-optical lithography, photoresist and etching will be introduced. The students should enter deeply into one of the subjects below and present their work for the whole class. Device isolation, Contacts and metallization, CMOS technology, GaAs technology, bipolar technology and MEMS. Laboratory assignment includes classical labs with diode and transistor measurements.

Teaching and working methods

Lectures and tutorial. Laboratory work, Weekly Home assignment , Student oral presentations. Mandatory attendance of some lectures and during student presentations.
The course runs over the entire autumn semester.

Examination

Grades

Other information

Supplementary courses: Solar Cell Technology, Power Electronics,and Charge Transport in Organic and Inorganic Materials, System Design.

Department

Director of Studies or equivalent

Examiner

Course website and other links

Education components

Course literature

Additional literature

Books

• Jasprit Singh, (2004) Semiconductor Devices, basic principles
  ISBN: 0-471-36245-X
  Wiley & Sons
• Sami Franssila, (2004) Introduction to Microfabrication
  ISBN: 0470-85106-6
  Wiley & Sons