Semiconductor's sensistivity to light

[Somali_Physicist]

Hello guys , I will make this brief.Does anyone know why Semi Conductors are more sensitive to light than other materials? For example Semi Conductors are used in Photovoltaic cells.

 

[hbarover2]

A solid state issue. Photons entering the doped semiconductor junction have sufficient energy to promote charge into the conduction band.
With pin diodes the doping can be tailored to make the semiconductor sensitive in specific bands from the near IR into the UV.

Can't do that in insulators. Conductors like cesium make good photo-injectors but that is a surface work function issue.

Are you interested in organic photovoltaics? I wonder how that research is going? Promising technology there. Wouldn't it be cool if some clever gent or lady could design and market an inexpensive roof shingle with a flexible integrated organic photovoltaic, which interconnect in some simple way like LEGO, and still keeps the weather out.

Every house in America goes green. Entrepreneurial windfall $$$$

 

[Somali_Physicist]

A solid state issue. Photons entering the doped semiconductor junction have sufficient energy to promote charge into the conduction band.
With pin diodes the doping can be tailored to make the semiconductor sensitive in specific bands from the near IR into the UV.

Can't do that in insulators. Conductors like cesium make good photo-injectors but that is a surface work function issue.

Are you interested in organic photovoltaics? I wonder how that research is going? Promising technology there. Wouldn't it be cool if some clever gent or lady could design and market an inexpensive roof shingle with a flexible integrated organic photovoltaic, which interconnect in some simple way like LEGO, and still keeps the weather out.

Every house in America goes green. Entrepreneurial windfall $$$$

Thankyou dude , do you have any links for the "conduction bands" and the process of doping to alter a semiconductors properties to increase sensitivity.Also if I'm grasping this generally , semiconductors are able to be doped in a specific way that insulators along with conductors lack.Thus this allows specific photons to be absorbed more readily which displace a photo electric current?

I am interested in everything photovoltaic, i have been trying to find bacteria which convert sunlight into electric energy readily.After all, all humans use the energy from plants which itself used photosynthesis to survive.

 

[analogdesign]

Conduction bands are a basic part of the theory of semiconductors. Any book or website that describes how semiconductors work will discuss them. The same basic processes that are used to make computer chips are also used to make solar cells.

There is a great online free textbook called Principles of Semiconductor Devices. It contains a wealth of knowledge you may find interesting. Here is the relevant chapter to get you started: https://ecee.colorado.edu/~bart/book/book/chapter2/ch2_3.htm