Understanding Semiconductor Doping Fundamentals

This section explores the basic principles of semiconductor doping and covalent bonding in silicon. Silicon and germanium atoms, with their four outer electrons, form covalent bonds with neighboring atoms in a crystalline structure.

Definition: Doping is the process of adding specific impurity atoms to semiconductor materials to enhance their conductivity by modifying the electron structure.

Vocabulary: Covalent bonds are chemical bonds formed by the sharing of electron pairs between atoms.

Example: Silicon atoms form a regular crystal structure where each atom shares its four outer electrons with four neighboring atoms.

Highlight: N-type doping involves introducing a group 5 atom into the silicon structure, which contributes an extra free electron to enhance conductivity.