Semiconductor materials
Encyclopedia
Semiconductor materials are nominally small band gap
insulators. The defining property of a semiconductor
material is that it can be doped
with impurities that alter its electronic properties in a controllable way.
Because of their application in devices like transistor
s (and therefore computer
s) and laser
s, the search for new semiconductor materials and the improvement of existing materials is an important field of study in materials science
.
Most commonly used semiconductor materials are crystalline inorganic solids. These materials are classified according to the periodic table groups of their constituent atoms.
Different semiconductor materials differ in their properties. Thus, in comparison with silicon
, compound semiconductor
s have both advantages and disadvantages. For example, gallium arsenide (GaAs) has six times higher electron mobility
than silicon, which allows faster operation; wider band gap
, which allows operation of power devices at higher temperatures, and gives lower thermal noise to low power devices at room temperature; its direct band gap gives it more favorable optoelectronic properties than the indirect band gap of silicon; it can be alloyed to ternary and quaternary compositions, with adjustable band gap width, allowing light emission at chosen wavelengths, and allowing e.g. matching to wavelengths with lowest losses in optical fibers. GaAs can be also grown in a semi-insulating form, which is suitable as a lattice-matching insulating substrate for GaAs devices. Conversely, silicon is robust, cheap, and easy to process, whereas GaAs is brittle and expensive, and insulation layers can not be created by just growing an oxide layer; GaAs is therefore used only where silicon is not sufficient.
By alloying multiple compounds, some semiconductor materials are tunable, e.g., in band gap
or lattice constant
. The result is ternary, quaternary, or even quinary compositions. Ternary compositions allow adjusting the band gap within the range of the involved binary compounds; however, in case of combination of direct and indirect band gap materials there is a ratio where indirect band gap prevails, limiting the range usable for optoelectronics; e.g. AlGaAs LEDs are limited to 660 nm by this. Lattice constants of the compounds also tend to be different, and the lattice mismatch against the substrate, dependent on the mixing ratio, causes defects in amounts dependent on the mismatch magnitude; this influences the ratio of achievable radiative/nonradiative recombinations and determines the luminous efficiency of the device. Quaternary and higher compositions allow adjusting simultaneously the band gap and the lattice constant, allowing increasing radiant efficiency at wider range of wavelengths; for example AlGaInP is used for LEDs . Materials transparent to the generated wavelength of light are advantageous, as this allows more efficient extraction of photons from the bulk of the material. That is, in such transparent materials, light production is not limited to just the surface. Index of refraction is also composition-dependent and influences the extraction efficiency of photons from the material.
Band gap
In solid state physics, a band gap, also called an energy gap or bandgap, is an energy range in a solid where no electron states can exist. In graphs of the electronic band structure of solids, the band gap generally refers to the energy difference between the top of the valence band and the...
insulators. The defining property of a semiconductor
Semiconductor
A semiconductor is a material with electrical conductivity due to electron flow intermediate in magnitude between that of a conductor and an insulator. This means a conductivity roughly in the range of 103 to 10−8 siemens per centimeter...
material is that it can be doped
Doping (semiconductor)
In semiconductor production, doping intentionally introduces impurities into an extremely pure semiconductor for the purpose of modulating its electrical properties. The impurities are dependent upon the type of semiconductor. Lightly and moderately doped semiconductors are referred to as extrinsic...
with impurities that alter its electronic properties in a controllable way.
Because of their application in devices like transistor
Transistor
A transistor is a semiconductor device used to amplify and switch electronic signals and power. It is composed of a semiconductor material with at least three terminals for connection to an external circuit. A voltage or current applied to one pair of the transistor's terminals changes the current...
s (and therefore computer
Computer
A computer is a programmable machine designed to sequentially and automatically carry out a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations. The particular sequence of operations can be changed readily, allowing the computer to solve more than one kind of problem...
s) and laser
Laser
A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of photons. The term "laser" originated as an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation...
s, the search for new semiconductor materials and the improvement of existing materials is an important field of study in materials science
Materials science
Materials science is an interdisciplinary field applying the properties of matter to various areas of science and engineering. This scientific field investigates the relationship between the structure of materials at atomic or molecular scales and their macroscopic properties. It incorporates...
.
Most commonly used semiconductor materials are crystalline inorganic solids. These materials are classified according to the periodic table groups of their constituent atoms.
Different semiconductor materials differ in their properties. Thus, in comparison with silicon
Silicon
Silicon is a chemical element with the symbol Si and atomic number 14. A tetravalent metalloid, it is less reactive than its chemical analog carbon, the nonmetal directly above it in the periodic table, but more reactive than germanium, the metalloid directly below it in the table...
, compound semiconductor
Compound semiconductor
A compound semiconductor is a semiconductor compound composed of elements from two or more different groups of the periodic table . These semiconductors typically form in groups 13-16 ,...
s have both advantages and disadvantages. For example, gallium arsenide (GaAs) has six times higher electron mobility
Electron mobility
In solid-state physics, the electron mobility characterizes how quickly an electron can move through a metal or semiconductor, when pulled by an electric field. In semiconductors, there is an analogous quantity for holes, called hole mobility...
than silicon, which allows faster operation; wider band gap
Band gap
In solid state physics, a band gap, also called an energy gap or bandgap, is an energy range in a solid where no electron states can exist. In graphs of the electronic band structure of solids, the band gap generally refers to the energy difference between the top of the valence band and the...
, which allows operation of power devices at higher temperatures, and gives lower thermal noise to low power devices at room temperature; its direct band gap gives it more favorable optoelectronic properties than the indirect band gap of silicon; it can be alloyed to ternary and quaternary compositions, with adjustable band gap width, allowing light emission at chosen wavelengths, and allowing e.g. matching to wavelengths with lowest losses in optical fibers. GaAs can be also grown in a semi-insulating form, which is suitable as a lattice-matching insulating substrate for GaAs devices. Conversely, silicon is robust, cheap, and easy to process, whereas GaAs is brittle and expensive, and insulation layers can not be created by just growing an oxide layer; GaAs is therefore used only where silicon is not sufficient.
By alloying multiple compounds, some semiconductor materials are tunable, e.g., in band gap
Band gap
In solid state physics, a band gap, also called an energy gap or bandgap, is an energy range in a solid where no electron states can exist. In graphs of the electronic band structure of solids, the band gap generally refers to the energy difference between the top of the valence band and the...
or lattice constant
Lattice constant
The lattice constant [or lattice parameter] refers to the constant distance between unit cells in a crystal lattice. Lattices in three dimensions generally have three lattice constants, referred to as a, b, and c. However, in the special case of cubic crystal structures, all of the constants are...
. The result is ternary, quaternary, or even quinary compositions. Ternary compositions allow adjusting the band gap within the range of the involved binary compounds; however, in case of combination of direct and indirect band gap materials there is a ratio where indirect band gap prevails, limiting the range usable for optoelectronics; e.g. AlGaAs LEDs are limited to 660 nm by this. Lattice constants of the compounds also tend to be different, and the lattice mismatch against the substrate, dependent on the mixing ratio, causes defects in amounts dependent on the mismatch magnitude; this influences the ratio of achievable radiative/nonradiative recombinations and determines the luminous efficiency of the device. Quaternary and higher compositions allow adjusting simultaneously the band gap and the lattice constant, allowing increasing radiant efficiency at wider range of wavelengths; for example AlGaInP is used for LEDs . Materials transparent to the generated wavelength of light are advantageous, as this allows more efficient extraction of photons from the bulk of the material. That is, in such transparent materials, light production is not limited to just the surface. Index of refraction is also composition-dependent and influences the extraction efficiency of photons from the material.
Types of semiconductor materials
- Group IVCarbon groupThe carbon group is a periodic table group consisting of carbon , silicon , germanium , tin , lead , and ununquadium ....
elemental semiconductors - Group IVCarbon groupThe carbon group is a periodic table group consisting of carbon , silicon , germanium , tin , lead , and ununquadium ....
compound semiconductorCompound semiconductorA compound semiconductor is a semiconductor compound composed of elements from two or more different groups of the periodic table . These semiconductors typically form in groups 13-16 ,...
s - IIIBoron groupThe boron group is the series of elements in group 13 of the periodic table, comprising boron , aluminium , gallium , indium , thallium , and ununtrium . The elements in the boron group are characterized by having three electrons in their outer energy levels...
-VNitrogen groupThe nitrogen group is a periodic table group consisting of nitrogen , phosphorus , arsenic , antimony , bismuth and ununpentium ....
semiconductors (See also: Template:III-V compounds): Crystallizing with high degree of stoichiometryStoichiometryStoichiometry is a branch of chemistry that deals with the relative quantities of reactants and products in chemical reactions. In a balanced chemical reaction, the relations among quantities of reactants and products typically form a ratio of whole numbers...
, most can be obtained as both n-typeN-type semiconductorN-type semiconductors are a type of extrinsic semiconductor where the dopant atoms are capable of providing extra conduction electrons to the host material . This creates an excess of negative electron charge carriers....
and p-typeP-type semiconductorA P-type semiconductor is obtained by carrying out a process of doping: that is, adding a certain type of atoms to the semiconductor in order to increase the number of free charge carriers ....
. Many have high carrier mobilities and direct energy gaps, making them useful for optoelectronics. - IIGroup 12 elementA group 12 element is one of the elements in group 12 in the periodic table. This includes zinc , cadmium and mercury . The further inclusion of copernicium in group 12 is supported by recent experiments on individual Cn atoms...
-VIChalcogenThe chalcogens are the chemical elements in group 16 of the periodic table. This group is also known as the oxygen family...
semiconductors: usually p-type, except ZnTe and ZnO which is n-type - I-VIIHalogenThe halogens or halogen elements are a series of nonmetal elements from Group 17 IUPAC Style of the periodic table, comprising fluorine , chlorine , bromine , iodine , and astatine...
semiconductors - IVCarbon groupThe carbon group is a periodic table group consisting of carbon , silicon , germanium , tin , lead , and ununquadium ....
-VIChalcogenThe chalcogens are the chemical elements in group 16 of the periodic table. This group is also known as the oxygen family...
semiconductors - IVCarbon groupThe carbon group is a periodic table group consisting of carbon , silicon , germanium , tin , lead , and ununquadium ....
-VIChalcogenThe chalcogens are the chemical elements in group 16 of the periodic table. This group is also known as the oxygen family...
semiconductors - VNitrogen groupThe nitrogen group is a periodic table group consisting of nitrogen , phosphorus , arsenic , antimony , bismuth and ununpentium ....
-VIChalcogenThe chalcogens are the chemical elements in group 16 of the periodic table. This group is also known as the oxygen family...
semiconductors - IIGroup 12 elementA group 12 element is one of the elements in group 12 in the periodic table. This includes zinc , cadmium and mercury . The further inclusion of copernicium in group 12 is supported by recent experiments on individual Cn atoms...
-VNitrogen groupThe nitrogen group is a periodic table group consisting of nitrogen , phosphorus , arsenic , antimony , bismuth and ununpentium ....
semiconductors - OxideOxideAn oxide is a chemical compound that contains at least one oxygen atom in its chemical formula. Metal oxides typically contain an anion of oxygen in the oxidation state of −2....
s - Layered semiconductors
- Magnetic semiconductors
- Organic semiconductorOrganic semiconductorAn organic semiconductor is an organic material with semiconductor properties. Single molecules, short chain and organic polymers can be semiconductive. Semiconducting small molecules include the polycyclic aromatic compounds pentacene, anthracene, and rubrene...
s - Charge-transfer complexes
- Others
Table of semiconductor materials
| Group | Elem. | Material | Formula | Band gap Band gap In solid state physics, a band gap, also called an energy gap or bandgap, is an energy range in a solid where no electron states can exist. In graphs of the electronic band structure of solids, the band gap generally refers to the energy difference between the top of the valence band and the... (eV Electronvolt In physics, the electron volt is a unit of energy equal to approximately joule . By definition, it is equal to the amount of kinetic energy gained by a single unbound electron when it accelerates through an electric potential difference of one volt... ) | Gap type | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IV | 1 | Diamond Material properties of diamond Diamond is the allotrope of carbon in which the carbon atoms are arranged in the specific type of cubic lattice called diamond cubic. Diamond is an optically isotropic crystal that is transparent to opaque. Owing to its strong covalent bonding, diamond is the hardest naturally occurring material... |
C | 5.47 | indirect | Excellent thermal conductivity. |
| IV | 1 | Silicon Silicon Silicon is a chemical element with the symbol Si and atomic number 14. A tetravalent metalloid, it is less reactive than its chemical analog carbon, the nonmetal directly above it in the periodic table, but more reactive than germanium, the metalloid directly below it in the table... |
Si | 1.11 | indirect | Most common semiconductor, easy to fabricate. Good electrical and mechanical properties. |
| IV | 1 | Germanium Germanium Germanium is a chemical element with the symbol Ge and atomic number 32. It is a lustrous, hard, grayish-white metalloid in the carbon group, chemically similar to its group neighbors tin and silicon. The isolated element is a semiconductor, with an appearance most similar to elemental silicon.... |
Ge | 0.67 | indirect | Used in early radar detection diodes and first transistors; requires lower purity than silicon. A substrate for high-efficiency multijunction photovoltaic cell Multijunction photovoltaic cell Multi-junction solar cells or tandem cells are solar cells containing several p-n junctions. Each junction is tuned to a different wavelength of light, reducing one of the largest inherent sources of losses, and thereby increasing efficiency... s. Very similar lattice constant to gallium arsenide. High-purity crystals used for gamma spectroscopy Gamma spectroscopy Gamma-ray spectroscopy is the quantitative study of the energy spectra of gamma-ray sources, both nuclear laboratory, geochemical, and astrophysical. Gamma rays are the highest-energy form of electromagnetic radiation, being physically exactly like all other forms except for higher photon energy... . May grow whiskers Whisker (metallurgy) Metal whiskering is a crystalline metallurgical phenomenon involving the spontaneous growth of tiny, filiform hairs from a metallic surface. The effect is primarily seen on elemental metals but also occurs with alloys.... , which impair reliability of some devices. |
| IV | 2 | Silicon carbide Silicon carbide Silicon carbide , also known as carborundum, is a compound of silicon and carbon with chemical formula SiC. It occurs in nature as the extremely rare mineral moissanite. Silicon carbide powder has been mass-produced since 1893 for use as an abrasive... , 3C-SiC |
SiC | 2.3 | indirect | used for early yellow LEDs |
| IV | 2 | Silicon carbide Silicon carbide Silicon carbide , also known as carborundum, is a compound of silicon and carbon with chemical formula SiC. It occurs in nature as the extremely rare mineral moissanite. Silicon carbide powder has been mass-produced since 1893 for use as an abrasive... , 4H-SiC |
SiC | 3.3 | indirect | |
| IV | 2 | Silicon carbide Silicon carbide Silicon carbide , also known as carborundum, is a compound of silicon and carbon with chemical formula SiC. It occurs in nature as the extremely rare mineral moissanite. Silicon carbide powder has been mass-produced since 1893 for use as an abrasive... , 6H-SiC |
SiC | 3.0 | indirect | used for early blue LEDs |
| IV | 2 | Silicon-germanium | SiGe | 0.67–1.11 | indirect | adjustable band gap, allows construction of heterojunction Heterojunction A heterojunction is the interface that occurs between two layers or regions of dissimilar crystalline semiconductors. These semiconducting materials have unequal band gaps as opposed to a homojunction... structures. Certain thicknesses of superlattice Superlattice Superlattice is a periodic structure of layers of two materials. Typically, the thickness of one layer is several nanometers.- Discovery :Superlattices were discovered early in the 20th century through their special X-ray diffraction patterns.... s have direct band gap. |
| III-V | 2 | Aluminium antimonide Aluminium antimonide Aluminium antimonide is a semiconductor of the group III-V family containing aluminium and antimony. The lattice constant is 0.61 nm. The indirect bandgap is approximately 1.6 eV at 300 K, whereas the direct band gap is 2.22 eV.... |
AlSb | 1.6/2.2 | indirect/direct | |
| III-V | 2 | Aluminium arsenide Aluminium arsenide Aluminium arsenide or aluminum arsenide is a semiconductor material with almost the same lattice constant as gallium arsenide and aluminium gallium arsenide and wider band gap than gallium arsenide.-Properties:... |
AlAs | 2.16 | indirect | |
| III-V | 2 | Aluminium nitride Aluminium nitride Aluminium nitride is a nitride of aluminium. Its wurtzite phase is a wide band gap semiconductor material, giving it potential application for deep ultraviolet optoelectronics.-History:... |
AlN | 6.28 | direct | Piezoelectric. Not used on its own as a semiconductor; AlN-close GaAlN possibly usable for ultraviolet LEDs. Inefficient emission at 210 nm was achieved on AlN. |
| III-V | 2 | Aluminium phosphide Aluminium phosphide Aluminium phosphide is an inorganic compound used as a wide band gap semiconductor and a fumigant. This colourless solid is generally sold as a grey-green-yellow powder due to the presence of impurities arising from hydrolysis and oxidation.-Properties:... |
AlP | 2.45 | indirect | |
| III-V | 2 | Boron nitride Boron nitride Boron nitride is a chemical compound with chemical formula BN, consisting of equal numbers of boron and nitrogen atoms. BN is isoelectronic to a similarly structured carbon lattice and thus exists in various crystalline forms... , cubic |
BN | 6.36 | indirect | potentially useful for ultraviolet LEDs |
| III-V | 2 | Boron nitride Boron nitride Boron nitride is a chemical compound with chemical formula BN, consisting of equal numbers of boron and nitrogen atoms. BN is isoelectronic to a similarly structured carbon lattice and thus exists in various crystalline forms... , hexagonal |
BN | 5.96 | quasi-direct | potentially useful for ultraviolet LEDs |
| III-V | 2 | Boron nitride Boron nitride Boron nitride is a chemical compound with chemical formula BN, consisting of equal numbers of boron and nitrogen atoms. BN is isoelectronic to a similarly structured carbon lattice and thus exists in various crystalline forms... , nanotube Nanotube A nanotube is a nanometer-scale tube-like structure. It may refer to:* Carbon nanotube* Inorganic nanotube* DNA nanotube* Membrane nanotube - a tubular membrane connection between cells... |
BN | ~5.5 | ||
| III-V | 2 | Boron phosphide Boron phosphide Boron phosphide is a chemical compound of boron and phosphorus. It is a semiconductor .-History:Crystals of boron phosphide have been synthesized by Henri Moissan as early as in 1891 .-Appearance:... |
BP | 2 | indirect | |
| III-V | 2 | Boron arsenide Boron arsenide Boron arsenide is a chemical compound of boron and arsenic. It is a cubic semiconductor with a lattice constant of 0.4777 nm and an indirect bandgap of roughly 1.5 eV... |
BAs | 1.5 | indirect | Resistant to radiation damage Radiation damage Radiation damage is a term associated with ionizing radiation.-Causes:This radiation may take several forms:*Cosmic rays and subsequent energetic particles caused by their collision with the atmosphere and other materials.... , possible applications in betavoltaics Betavoltaics Betavoltaics are generators of electrical current, in effect a form of battery, which use energy from a radioactive source emitting beta particles . A common source used is the hydrogen isotope, tritium... . |
| III-V | 2 | Boron arsenide Boron arsenide Boron arsenide is a chemical compound of boron and arsenic. It is a cubic semiconductor with a lattice constant of 0.4777 nm and an indirect bandgap of roughly 1.5 eV... |
B12As2 | 3.47 | indirect | Resistant to radiation damage Radiation damage Radiation damage is a term associated with ionizing radiation.-Causes:This radiation may take several forms:*Cosmic rays and subsequent energetic particles caused by their collision with the atmosphere and other materials.... , possible applications in betavoltaics Betavoltaics Betavoltaics are generators of electrical current, in effect a form of battery, which use energy from a radioactive source emitting beta particles . A common source used is the hydrogen isotope, tritium... . |
| III-V | 2 | Gallium antimonide | GaSb | 0.726 | direct | Used for infrared detectors and LEDs and thermophotovoltaics. Doped n with Te, p with Zn. |
| III-V | 2 | Gallium arsenide | GaAs | 1.43 | direct | second most common in use after silicon, commonly used as substrate for other III-V semiconductors, e.g. InGaAs and GaInNAs. Brittle. Lower hole mobility than Si, P-type CMOS transistors unfeasible. High impurity density, difficult to fabricate small structures. Used for near-IR LEDs, fast electronics, and high-efficiency solar cell Solar cell A solar cell is a solid state electrical device that converts the energy of light directly into electricity by the photovoltaic effect.... s. Very similar lattice constant to germanium Germanium Germanium is a chemical element with the symbol Ge and atomic number 32. It is a lustrous, hard, grayish-white metalloid in the carbon group, chemically similar to its group neighbors tin and silicon. The isolated element is a semiconductor, with an appearance most similar to elemental silicon.... , can be grown on germanium substrates. |
| III-V | 2 | Gallium nitride | GaN | 3.44 | direct | problematic to be doped to p-type, p-doping with Mg and annealing allowed first high-efficiency blue LEDs and blue laser Blue laser A so-called blue laser is a laser that emits electromagnetic radiation at a wavelength of between 360 and 480 nanometres, which the human eye sees as blue or violet. Diode lasers which emit light at 445 nm are becoming popular as handheld lasers. Light of a shorter wavelength than 400 nm is... s. Very sensitive to ESD. Insensitive to ionizing radiation, suitable for spacecraft solar panels. GaN transistors can operate at higher voltages and higher temperatures than GaAs, used in microwave power amplifiers. When doped with e.g. manganese, becomes a magnetic semiconductor Magnetic semiconductor Magnetic semiconductors are semiconductor materials that exhibit both ferromagnetism and useful semiconductor properties. If implemented in devices, these materials could provide a new type of control of conduction... . |
| III-V | 2 | Gallium phosphide | GaP | 2.26 | indirect | Used in early low to medium brightness cheap red/orange/green LEDs. Used standalone or with GaAsP. Transparent for yellow and red light, used as substrate for GaAsP red/yellow LEDs. Doped with S or Te for n-type, with Zn for p-type. Pure GaP emits green, nitrogen-doped GaP emits yellow-green, ZnO-doped GaP emits red. |
| III-V | 2 | Indium antimonide | InSb | 0.17 | direct | Used in infrared detectors and thermal imaging sensors, high quantum efficiency, low stability, require cooling, used in military long-range thermal imager systems. AlInSb-InSb-AlInSb structure used as quantum well Quantum well A quantum well is a potential well with only discrete energy values.One technology to create quantization is to confine particles, which were originally free to move in three dimensions, to two dimensions, forcing them to occupy a planar region... . Very high electron mobility Electron mobility In solid-state physics, the electron mobility characterizes how quickly an electron can move through a metal or semiconductor, when pulled by an electric field. In semiconductors, there is an analogous quantity for holes, called hole mobility... , electron velocity and ballistic length Ballistic transport Ballistic transport is the transport of electrons in a medium with negligible electrical resistivity due to scattering. Without scattering, electrons simply obey Newton's second law of motion at non-relativistic speeds.... . Transistors can operate below 0.5V and above 200 GHz. Terahertz frequencies maybe achievable. |
| III-V | 2 | Indium arsenide | InAs | 0.36 | direct | Used for infrared detectors for 1–3.8 µm, cooled or uncooled. High electron mobility. InAs dots in InGaAs matrix can serve as quantum dots. Quantum dots may be formed from a monolayer of InAs on InP or GaAs. Strong photo-Dember Photo-dember In semiconductor physics, the photo-Dember effect consists in the formation of a charge dipole in the vicinity of a semiconductor surface after ultra-fast photo-generation of charge carriers... emitter, used as a terahertz radiation source. |
| III-V | 2 | Indium nitride | InN | 0.7 | direct | Possible use in solar cells, but p-type doping difficult. Used frequently as alloys. |
| III-V | 2 | Indium phosphide | InP | 1.35 | direct | Commonly used as substrate for epitaxial InGaAs. Superior electron veloxity, used in high-power and high-frequency applications. Used in optoelectronics. |
| III-V | 3 | Aluminium gallium arsenide Aluminium gallium arsenide Aluminium gallium arsenide is a semiconductor material with very nearly the same lattice constant as GaAs, but a larger bandgap. The x in the formula above is a number between 0 and 1 - this indicates an arbitrary alloy between GaAs and AlAs.The bandgap varies between 1.42 eV and 2.16 eV... |
AlGaAs | 1.42–2.16 | direct/indirect | AlxGa1–xAs, direct band gap for x<0.4 (corresponding to 1.42–1.95 eV); can be lattice-matched to GaAs substrate over entire composition range; tends to oxidize; n-doping with Si, Se, Te; p-doping with Zn, C, Be, Mg. Can be used for infrared laser diodes. Used as a barrier layer in GaAs devices to confine electrons to GaAs (see e.g. QWIP). AlGaAs with composition close to AlAs is almost transparent to sunlight. Used in GaAs/AlGaAs solar cells. |
| III-V | 3 | Indium gallium arsenide Indium gallium arsenide Indium gallium arsenide is a semiconductor composed of indium, gallium and arsenic. It is used in high-power and high-frequency electronics because of its superior electron velocity with respect to the more common semiconductors silicon and gallium arsenide. InGaAs bandgap also makes it the... |
InGaAs | 0.36–1.43 | direct | InxGa1–xAs. Well-developed material. Can be lattice matched to InP substrates. Use in infrared technology and thermophotovoltaics. Indium content determines charge carrier density. For x=0.015, InGaAs perfectly lattice-matches germanium; can be used in multijunction photovoltaic cells. Used in infrared sensors, avalanche photodiodes, laser diodes, optical fiber communication detectors, and short-wavelength infrared cameras. |
| III-V | 3 | Indium gallium phosphide Indium gallium phosphide Indium gallium phosphide , also called gallium indium phosphide , is a semiconductor composed of indium, gallium and phosphorus... |
InGaP | 1.35–2.26 | direct/indirect | used for HEMT HEMT High electron mobility transistor , also known as heterostructure FET or modulation-doped FET , is a field effect transistor incorporating a junction between two materials with different band gaps as the channel instead of a doped region, as is generally the case for MOSFET... and HBT Heterojunction bipolar transistor The heterojunction bipolar transistor is a type of bipolar junction transistor which uses differing semiconductor materials for the emitter and base regions, creating a heterojunction. The HBT improves on the BJT in that it that can handle signals of very high frequencies, up to several hundred... structures and high-efficiency multijunction solar cell Solar cell A solar cell is a solid state electrical device that converts the energy of light directly into electricity by the photovoltaic effect.... s for e.g. satellites. Ga0.5In0.5P is almost lattice-matched to GaAs, with AlGaIn used for quantum wells for red lasers. |
| III-V | 3 | Aluminium indium arsenide Aluminium indium arsenide Aluminium indium arsenide, also indium aluminium arsenide or AlInAs , is a semiconductor material with very nearly the same lattice constant as GaInAs, but a larger bandgap... |
AlInAs | 0.36–2.16 | direct/indirect | Buffer layer in metamorphic HEMT HEMT High electron mobility transistor , also known as heterostructure FET or modulation-doped FET , is a field effect transistor incorporating a junction between two materials with different band gaps as the channel instead of a doped region, as is generally the case for MOSFET... transistors, adjusting lattice constant between GaAs substrate and GaInAs channel. Can form layered heterostructures acting as quantum wells, in e.g. quantum cascade laser Quantum cascade laser Quantum cascade lasers are semiconductor lasers that emit in the mid- to far-infrared portion of the electromagnetic spectrum and were first demonstrated by Jerome Faist, Federico Capasso, Deborah Sivco, Carlo Sirtori, Albert Hutchinson, and Alfred Cho at Bell Laboratories in 1994.Unlike typical... s. |
| III-V | 3 | Aluminium indium antimonide | AlInSb | |||
| III-V | 3 | Gallium arsenide nitride | GaAsN | |||
| III-V | 3 | Gallium arsenide phosphide Gallium arsenide phosphide Gallium arsenide phosphide is a semiconductor material, an alloy of gallium arsenide and gallium phosphide. It exists in various composition ratios indicated in its formula by the fraction x.... |
GaAsP | 1.43–2.26 | direct/indirect | Used in red, orange and yellow LEDs. Often grown on GaP. Can be doped with nitrogen. |
| III-V | 3 | Gallium arsenide antimonide | GaAsSb | 0.7–1.42 | direct | |
| III-V | 3 | Aluminium gallium nitride Aluminium gallium nitride Aluminium gallium nitride is a semiconductor material. It is an alloy of aluminium nitride and gallium nitride.AlGaN is used to manufacture light-emitting diodes operating in blue to ultraviolet region, where wavelengths down to 250 nm were achieved. It is also used in blue semiconductor... |
AlGaN | 3.44–6.28 | direct | Used in blue laser Blue laser A so-called blue laser is a laser that emits electromagnetic radiation at a wavelength of between 360 and 480 nanometres, which the human eye sees as blue or violet. Diode lasers which emit light at 445 nm are becoming popular as handheld lasers. Light of a shorter wavelength than 400 nm is... diodes Laser diode The laser diode is a laser where the active medium is a semiconductor similar to that found in a light-emitting diode. The most common type of laser diode is formed from a p-n junction and powered by injected electric current... , ultraviolet LEDs (down to 250 nm), and AlGaN/GaN HEMT HEMT High electron mobility transistor , also known as heterostructure FET or modulation-doped FET , is a field effect transistor incorporating a junction between two materials with different band gaps as the channel instead of a doped region, as is generally the case for MOSFET... s. Can be grown on sapphire. Used in heterojunction Heterojunction A heterojunction is the interface that occurs between two layers or regions of dissimilar crystalline semiconductors. These semiconducting materials have unequal band gaps as opposed to a homojunction... s with AlN and GaN. |
| III-V | 3 | Aluminium gallium phosphide Aluminium gallium phosphide Aluminium gallium phosphide, P, a phosphide of aluminium and gallium, is a semiconductor material. It is an alloy of aluminium phosphide and gallium phosphide. It is used to manufacture light-emitting diodes emitting green light.-External links:*... |
AlGaP | 2.26–2.45 | indirect | Used in some green LEDs. |
| III-V | 3 | Indium gallium nitride Indium gallium nitride Indium gallium nitride is a semiconductor material made of a mix of gallium nitride and indium nitride . It is a ternary group III/group V direct bandgap semiconductor. Its bandgap can be tuned by varying the amount of indium in the alloy... |
InGaN | 2–3.4 | direct | InxGa1–xN, x usually between 0.02–0.3 (0.02 for near-UV, 0.1 for 390 nm, 0.2 for 420 nm, 0.3 for 440 nm). Can be grown epitaxially on sapphire, SiC wafers or silicon. Used in modern blue and green LEDs, InGaN quantum wells are effective emitters from green to ultraviolet. Insensitive to radiation damage, possible use in satellite solar cells. Insensitive to defects, tolerant to lattice mismatch damage. High heat capacity. |
| III-V | 3 | Indium arsenide antimonide | InAsSb | |||
| III-V | 3 | Indium gallium antimonide | InGaSb | |||
| III-V | 4 | Aluminium gallium indium phosphide Aluminium gallium indium phosphide Aluminium gallium indium phosphide is a semiconductor material.AlGaInP is used in manufacture of light-emitting diodes of high-brightness red, orange, green, and yellow color, to form the heterostructure emitting light... |
AlGaInP | direct/indirect | also InAlGaP, InGaAlP, AlInGaP; for lattice matching to GaAs substrates the In mole fraction is fixed at about 0.48, the Al/Ga ratio is adjusted to achieve band gaps between about 1.9 and 2.35 eV; direct or indirect band gaps depending on the Al/Ga/In ratios; used for waveengths between 560–650 nm; tends to form ordered phases during deposition, which has to be prevented | |
| III-V | 4 | Aluminium gallium arsenide phosphide | AlGaAsP | |||
| III-V | 4 | Indium gallium arsenide phosphide | InGaAsP | |||
| III-V | 4 | Indium gallium arsenide antimonide | InGaAsSb | Use in thermophotovoltaics. | ||
| III-V | 4 | Indium arsenide antimonide phosphide Indium arsenide antimonide phosphide Indium arsenide antimonide phosphide is a semiconductor material.InAsSbP has been widely used as blocking layers for semiconductor laser structures, as well as for the mid-infrared light-emitting diodes, photodetectors and thermophotovoltaic cells.... |
InAsSbP | Use in thermophotovoltaics. | ||
| III-V | 4 | Aluminium indium arsenide phosphide | AlInAsP | |||
| III-V | 4 | Aluminium gallium arsenide nitride | AlGaAsN | |||
| III-V | 4 | Indium gallium arsenide nitride | InGaAsN | |||
| III-V | 4 | Indium aluminium arsenide nitride | InAlAsN | |||
| III-V | 4 | Gallium arsenide antimonide nitride | GaAsSbN | |||
| III-V | 5 | Gallium indium nitride arsenide antimonide | GaInNAsSb | |||
| III-V | 5 | Gallium indium arsenide antimonide phosphide Gallium indium arsenide antimonide phosphide Gallium indium arsenide antimonide phosphide is a semiconductor material.Research has shown that GaInAsSbP can be used in the manufacture of mid-infrared light-emitting diodes and thermophotovoltaic cells.... |
GaInAsSbP | Can be grown on InAs, GaSb, and other substrates. Can be lattice matched by varying composition. Possibly usable for mid-infrared LEDs. | ||
| II-VI | 2 | Cadmium selenide Cadmium selenide Cadmium selenide is a solid, binary compound of cadmium and selenium. Common names for this compound are cadmium selenide, cadmium selenide, and cadmoselite .... |
CdSe | 1.74 | direct | Nanoparticle Nanoparticle In nanotechnology, a particle is defined as a small object that behaves as a whole unit in terms of its transport and properties. Particles are further classified according to size : in terms of diameter, coarse particles cover a range between 10,000 and 2,500 nanometers. Fine particles are sized... s used as quantum dot Quantum dot A quantum dot is a portion of matter whose excitons are confined in all three spatial dimensions. Consequently, such materials have electronic properties intermediate between those of bulk semiconductors and those of discrete molecules. They were discovered at the beginning of the 1980s by Alexei... s. Intrinsic n-type, difficult to dope p-type, but can be p-type doped with nitrogen. Possible use in optoelectronics. Tested for high-efficiency solar cells. |
| II-VI | 2 | Cadmium sulfide Cadmium sulfide Cadmium sulfide is the inorganic compound with the formula CdS. Cadmium sulfide is a yellow solid. It occurs in nature with two different crystal structures as the rare minerals greenockite and hawleyite, but is more prevalent as an impurity substituent in the similarly structured zinc ores... |
CdS | 2.42 | direct | Used in photoresistor Photoresistor A photoresistor or light dependent resistor is a resistor whose resistance decreases with increasing incident light intensity. It can also be referred to as a photoconductor or CdS device, from "cadmium sulfide," which is the material from which the device is made and that actually exhibits the... s and solar cells; CdS/Cu2S was the first efficient solar cell. Used in solar cells with CdTe. Common as quantum dot Quantum dot A quantum dot is a portion of matter whose excitons are confined in all three spatial dimensions. Consequently, such materials have electronic properties intermediate between those of bulk semiconductors and those of discrete molecules. They were discovered at the beginning of the 1980s by Alexei... s. Crystals can act as solid-state lasers. Electroluminescent. When doped, can act as a phosphor Phosphor A phosphor, most generally, is a substance that exhibits the phenomenon of luminescence. Somewhat confusingly, this includes both phosphorescent materials, which show a slow decay in brightness , and fluorescent materials, where the emission decay takes place over tens of nanoseconds... . |
| II-VI | 2 | Cadmium telluride Cadmium telluride Cadmium telluride is a crystalline compound formed from cadmium and tellurium. It is used as an infrared optical window and a solar cell material. It is usually sandwiched with cadmium sulfide to form a p-n junction photovoltaic solar cell... |
CdTe | 1.49 | Used in solar cells with CdS. Used in thin film solar cell Thin film solar cell A thin-film solar cell , also called a thin-film photovoltaic cell , is a solar cell that is made by depositing one or more thin layers of photovoltaic material on a substrate... s and other cadmium telluride photovoltaics Cadmium telluride photovoltaics Cadmium telluride photovoltaics describes a photovoltaic technology that is based on the use of cadmium telluride thin film, a semiconductor layer designed to absorb and convert sunlight into electricity... ; less efficient than polysilicon but cheaper. High electro-optic effect Electro-optic effect An electro-optic effect is a change in the optical properties of a material in response to an electric field that varies slowly compared with the frequency of light... , used in electro-optic modulator Electro-optic modulator Electro-optic modulator is an optical device in which a signal-controlled element displaying electro-optic effect is used to modulate a beam of light. The modulation may be imposed on the phase, frequency, amplitude, or polarization of the modulated beam... s. Fluorescent at 790 nm. Nanoparticles usable as quantum dots. |
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| II-VI, oxide | 2 | Zinc oxide Zinc oxide Zinc oxide is an inorganic compound with the formula ZnO. It is a white powder that is insoluble in water. The powder is widely used as an additive into numerous materials and products including plastics, ceramics, glass, cement, rubber , lubricants, paints, ointments, adhesives, sealants,... |
ZnO | 3.37 | direct | Photocatalytic. Bandwidth tunable from 3 to 4 eV by alloying with magnesium oxide Magnesium oxide Magnesium oxide , or magnesia, is a white hygroscopic solid mineral that occurs naturally as periclase and is a source of magnesium . It has an empirical formula of and consists of a lattice of Mg2+ ions and O2– ions held together by ionic bonds... and cadmium oxide Cadmium oxide Cadmium oxide is an inorganic compound with the formula CdO. It is one of the main precursors to other cadmium compounds. It crystallizes in a cubic rocksalt lattice like sodium chloride, with octahedral cation and anion centers. It occurs naturally as the rare mineral monteponite. Cadmium oxide... . Intrinsic n-type, p-type doping is difficult. Heavy aluminium, indium, or gallium doping yields transparent conductive coatings; ZnO:Al is used as window coatings transparent in visible and reflective in infrared region and as conductive films in LCD displays and solar panels as a replacement of indium tin oxide Indium tin oxide Indium tin oxide is a solid solution of indium oxide and tin oxide , typically 90% In2O3, 10% SnO2 by weight. It is transparent and colorless in thin layers while in bulk form it is yellowish to grey... . Resistant to radiation damage. Possible use in LEDs and laser diodes. Possible use in random laser Random laser A random laser is a laser that uses a highly disordered gain medium. A random laser uses no optical cavity but the remaining principles of operation remain the same as for a conventional laser... s. |
| II-VI | 2 | Zinc selenide Zinc selenide Zinc selenide , is a light yellow binary solid compound. It is an intrinsic semiconductor with a band gap of about 2.70 eV at 25 °C. ZnSe rarely occurs in nature... |
ZnSe | 2.7 | direct | Used for blue lasers and LEDs. Easy to n-type doping, p-type doping is difficult but can be done with e.g. nitrogen. Common optical material in infrared optics. |
| II-VI | 2 | Zinc sulfide Zinc sulfide Zinc sulfide is a inorganic compound with the formula ZnS. ZnS is the main form of zinc in nature, where it mainly occurs as the mineral sphalerite... |
ZnS | 3.54/3.91 | direct | Band gap 3.54 eV (cubic), 3.91 (hexagonal). Can be doped both n-type and p-type. Common scintillator/phosphor when suitably doped. |
| II-VI | 2 | Zinc telluride Zinc telluride Zinc telluride is a binary chemical compound with the formula ZnTe. This solid is a semiconductor material with band gap of 2.23–2.25 eV. It is usually a P-type semiconductor. Its crystal structure is cubic, like that for sphalerite and diamond.... |
ZnTe | 2.25 | direct | Can be grown on AlSb, GaSb, InAs, and PbSe. Used in solar cells, compoments of microwave generators, blue LEDs and lasers. Used in electrooptics. Together with lithium niobate Lithium niobate Lithium niobate is a compound of niobium, lithium, and oxygen. Its single crystals are an important material for optical waveguides, mobile phones, optical modulators and various other linear and non-linear optical applications.-Properties:... used to generate terahertz radiation Terahertz radiation In physics, terahertz radiation refers to electromagnetic waves propagating at frequencies in the terahertz range. It is synonymously termed submillimeter radiation, terahertz waves, terahertz light, T-rays, T-waves, T-light, T-lux, THz... . |
| II-VI | 3 | Cadmium zinc telluride Cadmium zinc telluride Cadmium zinc telluride, or CZT, is a compound of cadmium, zinc and tellurium or, more strictly speaking, an alloy of cadmium telluride and zinc telluride. A direct bandgap semiconductor, it is used in a variety of applications, including radiation detectors, photorefractive gratings,... , CZT |
CdZnTe | 1.4–2.2 | direct | Efficient solid-state x-ray and gamma-ray detector, can operate at room temperature. High electro-optic coefficient. Used in solar cells. Can be used to generate and detect terahertz radiation. Can be used as a substrate for epitaxial growth of HgCdTe. |
| II-VI | 3 | Mercury cadmium telluride | HgCdTe | 0–1.5 | Known as "MerCad". Extensive use in sensitive cooled infrared imaging sensors, infrared astronomy Infrared astronomy Infrared astronomy is the branch of astronomy and astrophysics that studies astronomical objects visible in infrared radiation. The wavelength of infrared light ranges from 0.75 to 300 micrometers... , and infrared detectors. Alloy of mercury telluride (a semimetal, zero band gap) and CdTe. High electron mobility. The only common material capable of operating in both 3–5 µm and 12–15 µm atmospheric window Atmospheric window The infrared atmospheric window is the overall dynamic property of the earth's atmosphere, taken as a whole at each place and occasion of interest, that lets some infrared radiation from the cloud tops and land-sea surface pass directly to space without intermediate absorption and re-emission, and... s. Can be grown on CdZnTe. |
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| II-VI | 3 | Mercury zinc telluride Mercury zinc telluride Mercury zinc telluride is a telluride of mercury and zinc, an alloy of mercury telluride and zinc telluride. It is a narrow-gap semiconductor material.... |
HgZnTe | 0–2.25 | Used in infrared detectors, infrared imaging sensors, and infrared astronomy. Better mechanical and thermal properties than HgCdTe but more difficult to control the composition. More difficult to form complex heterostructures. | |
| II-VI | 3 | Mercury zinc selenide | HgZnSe | |||
| I-VII | 2 | Cuprous chloride | CuCl | 3.4 | direct | |
| I-VI | 2 | Copper sulfide Copper sulfide Copper sulfides describe a family of chemical compounds and minerals with the formula CuxSy. Both minerals and synthetic materials comprise these compounds. Some copper sulfides are economically important ores.... |
Cu2S | 1.2 | direct | p-type, Cu2S/CdS was the first efficient thin film solar cell |
| IV-VI | 2 | Lead selenide | PbSe | 0.27 | direct | Used in infrared detectors for thermal imaging. Nanocrystals usable as quantum dots. |
| IV-VI | 2 | Lead(II) sulfide Lead(II) sulfide Lead sulfide is an inorganic compound with the formula Pb. It finds limited use in electronic devices. PbS, also known as galena, is the principal ore and most important compound of lead.... |
PbS | 0.37 | Mineral galena Galena Galena is the natural mineral form of lead sulfide. It is the most important lead ore mineral.Galena is one of the most abundant and widely distributed sulfide minerals. It crystallizes in the cubic crystal system often showing octahedral forms... , first semiconductor in practical use, used in cat's whisker detectors; the detectors are slow due to high dielectric constant of PbS. Oldest material used in infrared detectors. At room temperature can detect SWIR, longer wavelengths require cooling. |
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| IV-VI | 2 | Lead telluride | PbTe | 0.32 | Low thermal conductivity, good thermoelectric material. | |
| IV-VI | 2 | Tin sulfide Tin(II) sulfide Tin sulfide is a chemical compound of tin and sulfur. The chemical formula is SnS. Its natural occurrence concerns herzenbergite, a rare mineral.-Synthesis:... |
SnS | 1.0 | indirect | |
| IV-VI | 2 | Tin sulfide | SnS2 | 2.2 | ||
| IV-VI | 2 | Tin telluride Tin telluride Tin telluride is a compound of tin and tellurium ; it is a semi-metal. It is often alloyed with lead to make lead tin telluride, which is used as an infrared detector material.-External links:* *... |
SnTe | Complex band structure. | ||
| IV-VI | 3 | Lead tin telluride | PbSnTe | Used in infrared detectors and for thermal imaging. | ||
| IV-VI | 3 | Thallium tin telluride | Tl2SnTe5 | |||
| IV-VI | 3 | Thallium germanium telluride | Tl2GeTe5 | |||
| V-VI, layered | 2 | Bismuth telluride Bismuth telluride Bismuth telluride is a gray powder that is a compound of bismuth and tellurium also known as bismuth telluride. It is a semiconductor which, when alloyed with antimony or selenium is an efficient thermoelectric material for refrigeration or portable power generation... |
Bi2Te3 | Efficient thermoelectric material when alloyed with selenium or antimony. Narrow-gap layered semiconductor. High electrical conductivity, low thermal conductivity. | ||
| II-V | 2 | Cadmium phosphide | Cd3P2 | |||
| II-V | 2 | Cadmium arsenide Cadmium arsenide Cadmium arsenide is a crystalline semiconductor with a tetragonal structure in the II-V family. It is a narrow gap semiconductor with an energy gap of 0.14 eV. The electron mobility is very large at ambient temperature... |
Cd3As2 | 0.14 | N-type intrinsic semiconductor. Very high electron mobility. Used in infrared detectors, photodetectors, dynamic thin-film pressure sensors, and magnetoresistors. | |
| II-V | 2 | Cadmium antimonide | Cd3Sb2 | |||
| II-V | 2 | Zinc phosphide Zinc phosphide Zinc phosphide is an inorganic chemical compound.- Reactions :Zinc phosphide can be prepared by the reaction of zinc with phosphorus:Zinc phosphide will react with water to produce phosphine and zinc hydroxide :-Rodenticide:... |
Zn3P2 | |||
| II-V | 2 | Zinc arsenide Zinc arsenide Zinc arsenide is a binary compound of zinc with arsenic which forms gray tetragonal crystals.... |
Zn3As2 | |||
| II-V | 2 | Zinc antimonide Zinc antimonide Zinc antimonide is an inorganic chemical compound. Like indium antimonide, aluminium antimonide, and gallium antimonide, it is a semiconducting intermetallic compound. It is used in transistors, infrared detectors and thermal imagers, as well as magnetoresistive devices.... |
Zn3Sb2 | Used in infrared detectors and thermal imagers, transistors, and magnetoresistors. | ||
| Oxide | 2 | Titanium dioxide Titanium dioxide Titanium dioxide, also known as titanium oxide or titania, is the naturally occurring oxide of titanium, chemical formula . When used as a pigment, it is called titanium white, Pigment White 6, or CI 77891. Generally it comes in two different forms, rutile and anatase. It has a wide range of... , anatase Anatase Anatase is one of the three mineral forms of titanium dioxide, the other two being brookite and rutile. It is always found as small, isolated and sharply developed crystals, and like rutile, a more commonly occurring modification of titanium dioxide, it crystallizes in the tetragonal system; but,... |
TiO2 | 3.2 | photocatalytic | |
| Oxide | 2 | Titanium dioxide Titanium dioxide Titanium dioxide, also known as titanium oxide or titania, is the naturally occurring oxide of titanium, chemical formula . When used as a pigment, it is called titanium white, Pigment White 6, or CI 77891. Generally it comes in two different forms, rutile and anatase. It has a wide range of... , rutile Rutile Rutile is a mineral composed primarily of titanium dioxide, TiO2.Rutile is the most common natural form of TiO2. Two rarer polymorphs of TiO2 are known:... |
TiO2 | 3.02 | photocatalytic | |
| Oxide | 2 | Titanium dioxide Titanium dioxide Titanium dioxide, also known as titanium oxide or titania, is the naturally occurring oxide of titanium, chemical formula . When used as a pigment, it is called titanium white, Pigment White 6, or CI 77891. Generally it comes in two different forms, rutile and anatase. It has a wide range of... , brookite Brookite Brookite is orthorhombic, and one of the four naturally occurring polymorphs of titanium dioxide, TiO2, approved by the International Mineralogical Association . The others are akaogiite , anatase and rutile... |
TiO2 | 2.96 | ||
| Oxide | 2 | Copper(I) oxide Copper(I) oxide Copper oxide or cuprous oxide is the inorganic compound with the formula Cu2O. It is one of the principal oxides of copper. This red-coloured solid is a component of some antifouling paints. The compound can appear either yellow or red, depending on the size of the particles, but both forms... |
Cu2O | 2.17 | One of the most studied semiconductors. Many applications and effects first demonstrated with it. Formerly used in rectifier diodes, before silicon. | |
| Oxide | 2 | Copper(II) oxide Copper(II) oxide Copper oxide or cupric oxide is the higher oxide of copper. As a mineral, it is known as tenorite.-Chemistry:It is a black solid with an ionic structure which melts above 1200 °C with some loss of oxygen... |
CuO | 1.2 | P-type semiconductor. | |
| Oxide | 2 | Uranium dioxide Uranium dioxide Uranium dioxide or uranium oxide , also known as urania or uranous oxide, is an oxide of uranium, and is a black, radioactive, crystalline powder that naturally occurs in the mineral uraninite. It is used in nuclear fuel rods in nuclear reactors. A mixture of uranium and plutonium dioxides is used... |
UO2 | 1.3 | High Seebeck coefficient, resistant to high temperatures, promising thermoelectric and thermophotovoltaic Thermophotovoltaic Thermophotovoltaic energy conversion is a direct conversion process from heat differentials to electricity via photons. A basic thermophotovoltaic system consists of a thermal emitter and a photovoltaic diode cell.... applications. Formerly used in URDOX resistors, conducting at high temperature. Resistant to radiation damage Radiation damage Radiation damage is a term associated with ionizing radiation.-Causes:This radiation may take several forms:*Cosmic rays and subsequent energetic particles caused by their collision with the atmosphere and other materials.... . |
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| Oxide | 2 | Uranium trioxide Uranium trioxide Uranium trioxide , also called uranyl oxide, uranium oxide, and uranic oxide, is the hexavalent oxide of uranium. The solid may be obtained by heating uranyl nitrate to 400 °C. Its most commonly encountered polymorph, γ-UO3, is a yellow-orange powder.-Production and use:There are three methods... |
UO3 | |||
| Oxide | 2 | Bismuth trioxide Bismuth trioxide Bismuth oxide is perhaps the most industrially important compound of bismuth. It is also a common starting point for bismuth chemistry. It is found naturally as the mineral bismite and sphaerobismoite , but it is usually obtained as a by-product of the smelting of copper and lead ores... |
Bi2O3 | Ionic conductor, applications in fuel cells. | ||
| Oxide | 2 | Tin dioxide Tin dioxide Tin dioxide is the inorganic compound with the formula SnO2. The mineral form of SnO2 is called cassiterite, and this is the main ore of tin. With many other names , this oxide of tin is the most important raw material in tin chemistry... |
SnO2 | 3.7 | Oxygen-deficient n-type semiconductor. Used in gas sensors. | |
| Oxide | 3 | Barium titanate Barium titanate Barium titanate is the inorganic compound with the chemical formula BaTiO3. Barium titanate is a white powder and transparent as larger crystals... |
BaTiO3 | 3 | Ferroelectric, piezoelectric. Used in some uncooled thermal imagers. Used in nonlinear optics Nonlinear optics Nonlinear optics is the branch of optics that describes the behavior of light in nonlinear media, that is, media in which the dielectric polarization P responds nonlinearly to the electric field E of the light... . |
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| Oxide | 3 | Strontium titanate Strontium titanate Strontium titanate is an oxide of strontium and titanium with the chemical formula SrTiO3. At room temperature, it is a centrosymmetric paraelectric material with a perovskite structure... |
SrTiO3 | 3.3 | Ferroelectric, piezoelectric. Used in varistor Varistor A varistor is an electronic component with a "diode-like" nonlinear current–voltage characteristic. The name is a portmanteau of variable resistor... s. Conductive when niobium Niobium Niobium or columbium , is a chemical element with the symbol Nb and atomic number 41. It's a soft, grey, ductile transition metal, which is often found in the pyrochlore mineral, the main commercial source for niobium, and columbite... -doped. |
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| Oxide | 3 | Lithium niobate Lithium niobate Lithium niobate is a compound of niobium, lithium, and oxygen. Its single crystals are an important material for optical waveguides, mobile phones, optical modulators and various other linear and non-linear optical applications.-Properties:... |
LiNbO3 | 4 | Ferroelectric, piezoelectric, shows Pockels effect Pockels effect The Pockels effect , or Pockels electro-optic effect, produces birefringence in an optical medium induced by a constant or varying electric field. It is distinguished from the Kerr effect by the fact that the birefringence is proportional to the electric field, whereas in the Kerr effect it is... . Wide uses in electrooptics and photonics. |
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| Oxide | 3 | Lanthanum copper oxide | La2CuO4 | 2 | superconductive when doped with barium or strontium | |
| Layered | 2 | Lead(II) iodide Lead(II) iodide Lead iodide or plumbous iodide is a bright yellow solid at room temperature, that reversibly becomes brick red by heating. In its crystalline form it is used as a detector material for high energy photons including x-rays and gamma rays.... |
PbI2 | |||
| Layered | 2 | Molybdenum disulfide Molybdenum disulfide Molybdenum disulfide is the inorganic compound with the formula MoS2. This black crystalline sulfide of molybdenum occurs as the mineral molybdenite. It is the principal ore from which molybdenum metal is extracted. The natural amorphous form is known as the rarer mineral jordisite. MoS2 is less... |
MoS2 | |||
| Layered | 2 | Gallium selenide | GaSe | 2.1 | indirect | Photoconductor. Uses in nonlinear optics. |
| Layered | 2 | Tin sulfide Tin(II) sulfide Tin sulfide is a chemical compound of tin and sulfur. The chemical formula is SnS. Its natural occurrence concerns herzenbergite, a rare mineral.-Synthesis:... |
SnS | |||
| Layered | 2 | Bismuth sulfide | Bi2S3 | |||
| Magnetic, diluted (DMS) | 3 | Gallium manganese arsenide | GaMnAs | |||
| Magnetic, diluted (DMS) | 3 | Indium manganese arsenide | InMnAs | |||
| Magnetic, diluted (DMS) | 3 | Cadmium manganese telluride | CdMnTe | |||
| Magnetic, diluted (DMS) | 3 | Lead manganese telluride | PbMnTe | |||
| Magnetic | 4 | Lanthanum calcium manganate | La0.7Ca0.3MnO3 | colossal magnetoresistance Colossal magnetoresistance Colossal magnetoresistance is a property of some materials, mostly manganese-based perovskite oxides, that enables them to dramatically change their electrical resistance in the presence of a magnetic field... |
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| Magnetic | 2 | Iron(II) oxide Iron(II) oxide Iron oxide, also known as ferrous oxide, is one of the iron oxides. It is a black-colored powder with the chemical formula . It consists of the chemical element iron in the oxidation state of 2 bonded to oxygen. Its mineral form is known as wüstite. Iron oxide should not be confused with rust,... |
FeO | antiferromagnetic | ||
| Magnetic | 2 | Nickel(II) oxide Nickel(II) oxide Nickel oxide is the chemical compound with the formula NiO. It is notable as being the only well characterized oxide of nickel . The mineralogical form of NiO, bunsenite, is very rare. It is classified as a basic metal oxide... |
NiO | antiferromagnetic | ||
| Magnetic | 2 | Europium(II) oxide | EuO | ferromagnetic | ||
| Magnetic | 2 | Europium(II) sulfide Europium(II) sulfide Europium sulfide is the inorganic compound with the chemical formula EuS. It is a black, air-stable powder. Europium possesses an oxidation state of +II in europium sulfide, whereas the lanthanides exhibit a typical oxidation state of +III. Its Curie temperature is 16.6 K... |
EuS | ferromagnetic | ||
| Magnetic | 2 | Chromium(III) bromide | CrBr3 | |||
| other | 4 | Copper indium gallium selenide Copper indium gallium selenide Copper indium gallium selenide is a I-III-VI2 semiconductor material composed of copper, indium, gallium, and selenium. The material is a solid solution of copper indium selenide and copper gallium selenide... , CIGS |
Cu(In,Ga)Se2 | 1–1.7 | direct | CuInxGa1–xSe2. Polycrystalline. Used in thin film solar cells, highly efficient. |
| other | 4 | Copper zinc tin sulfide, CZTS | Cu2ZnSnS4 | 1.49 | direct | Cu2ZnSnS4 is derived from CIGS, replacing the Indium/Gallium with earth abundant Zinc/Tin. |
| other | 3 | Copper indium selenide, CIS | CuInSe2 | 1 | direct | |
| other | 3 | Silver gallium sulfide | AgGaS2 | nonlinear optical properties | ||
| other | 3 | Zinc silicon phosphide | ZnSiP2 | |||
| other | 2 | Arsenic selenide | As2S3 | semiconductive in both crystalline and glassy state | ||
| other | 2 | Platinum silicide Platinum silicide Platinum silicide is a semiconductor material used in infrared detectors. It is used in detectors for infrared astronomy.Platinum silicide is capable of operating at 1–5 µm wavelength range. It has a good sensitivity and high stability... |
PtSi | Used in infrared detectors for 1–5 µm. Used in infrared astronomy. High stability, low drift, used for measurements. Low quantum efficiency. | ||
| other | 2 | Bismuth(III) iodide Bismuth(III) iodide Bismuth iodide is the inorganic compound with the formula BiI3. This gray-black solid is the product of the reaction of bismuth and iodide, which once was of interest in qualitative inorganic analysis.... |
BiI3 | |||
| other | 2 | Mercury(II) iodide Mercury(II) iodide Mercury iodide is a chemical compound with an appearance of red-orange crystals. Unlike mercury chloride it is hardly soluble in water Mercury(II) iodide (HgI2) is a chemical compound with an appearance of red-orange crystals. Unlike mercury(II) chloride it is hardly soluble in water Mercury(II)... |
HgI2 | Used in some gamma-ray and x-ray detectors and imaging systems operating at room temperature. | ||
| other | 2 | Thallium(I) bromide Thallium(I) bromide Thallium bromide , a chemical compound, available in an ultra-pure state is a compound semiconductor; used in room temperature X- and gamma-ray detectors and blue sensitive photodetectors; used as a real-time x-ray image sensor; also used as a standard for elemental thallium.The crystalline... |
TlBr | Used in some gamma-ray and x-ray detectors and imaging systems operating at room temperature. Used as a real-time x-ray image sensor. | ||
| other | 1 | Selenium Selenium Selenium is a chemical element with atomic number 34, chemical symbol Se, and an atomic mass of 78.96. It is a nonmetal, whose properties are intermediate between those of adjacent chalcogen elements sulfur and tellurium... |
Se | 1.74 | Used in selenium rectifier Selenium rectifier A selenium rectifier is a type of metal rectifier, invented in 1933. They were used to replace vacuum tube rectifiers in power supplies for electronic equipment, and in high current battery charger applications.... s. |
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| other | 2 | Silver sulfide Silver sulfide Silver sulfide, Ag2S, is the sulfide of silver. This dense black solid constitutes the tarnish that forms over time on silverware and other silver objects. Silver sulfide is insoluble in all solvents, but is degraded by strong acids. Silver sulfide features a covalent bond, as it is made up of... |
Ag2S | 0.9 | ||
| other | 2 | Iron disulfide | FeS2 | 0.95 | Mineral pyrite Pyrite The mineral pyrite, or iron pyrite, is an iron sulfide with the formula FeS2. This mineral's metallic luster and pale-to-normal, brass-yellow hue have earned it the nickname fool's gold because of its resemblance to gold... . Used in later cat's whisker detectors, investigated for solar cell Solar cell A solar cell is a solid state electrical device that converts the energy of light directly into electricity by the photovoltaic effect.... s. |