22.1: Introduction
- Page ID
- 46330
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Semiconductors are amongst the most technologically important materials in existence today. With the exception of extremely simple objects such as filament light bulbs, all of the electronic devices that we use involve some semiconductor-based devices.
In order to appreciate how semiconductors can be used to create devices, it is important to have an understanding of the basic electronic properties of semiconductors. The first section of this TLP will concentrate on describing what it is that makes a material a semiconductor, and how semiconductors respond to an applied electric field. The second half of the TLP gives some specific examples of semiconductor devices and where these devices are used.