- #1
unseensoul
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There are a lot of resources out there which mention that when a diode is forward biased the majority carriers at the n-type material will move to the p-type material "through" the holes therefore the holes will move from the p-type region to the n-type region.
However, this doesn't make any sense to me at all...
As the majority carriers in the n-type region are at an excited state they are free to move about the material. Therefore when the diode is forward biased (assuming that external voltage is higher than barrier potential) the majority carriers (electrons) in the n-type region would move along the p-type material without recombining with the holes.
However, the holes would still move in opposite direction not due to the n-type's majority carriers but due to the neighbour valence electrons (which aren't in an excited state) being pushed due to the external voltage.
This explanation makes much more sense to me than the first one although I'm not sure whether that's what real happens.
I'd like to "hear" your suggestions/thoughts...
Edit:
http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/9639/84077772ht7.jpg" illustrates what I'm talking about; Notice the hole in the middle moving to the right plus the free electron at the top moving in opposite direction.
However, this doesn't make any sense to me at all...
As the majority carriers in the n-type region are at an excited state they are free to move about the material. Therefore when the diode is forward biased (assuming that external voltage is higher than barrier potential) the majority carriers (electrons) in the n-type region would move along the p-type material without recombining with the holes.
However, the holes would still move in opposite direction not due to the n-type's majority carriers but due to the neighbour valence electrons (which aren't in an excited state) being pushed due to the external voltage.
This explanation makes much more sense to me than the first one although I'm not sure whether that's what real happens.
I'd like to "hear" your suggestions/thoughts...
Edit:
http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/9639/84077772ht7.jpg" illustrates what I'm talking about; Notice the hole in the middle moving to the right plus the free electron at the top moving in opposite direction.
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