Silicon is the material of the digital revolution, of solar energy and of digital photography, which has revolutionized both astronomy and medical imaging. It is also the material of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), indispensable components of smart objects.
The discovery of the electronic and optoelectronic properties of germanium and silicon during the Second World War, followed by the invention of the transistor, ushered in the digital age. Although the first transistors were made from germanium, silicon eventually became the preferred material for these technologies.
Silicon, From Sand to Chips 1 traces the history of the discoveries, inventions and developments in basic components and chips that these two materials enabled one after the other. The book is divided into two volumes and this first volume is devoted to basic microelectronic components.
Table of Contents
Preface ix
Introduction: The Digital Revolution xv
Chapter 1 Silicon and Germanium: From Ore to Element 1
1.1 Extraction and purification of silicon/discovery and extraction of germanium 1
1.2 Silicon and germanium semiconductors: electrical characteristics 8
1.3 References 28
Chapter 2 The Point-Contact Diode 31
2.1 Features and functions 32
2.2 History 42
2.3 Research during the Second World War 48
2.4 The industrial development of germanium diodes after the Second World War 61
2.5 Appendix: currents in a metal-semiconductor diode 64
2.6 References 66
Chapter 3 The Point-Contact Transistor 71
3.1 The field effect 72
3.2 The germanium-based point-contact transistor 79
3.3 The industrial development of the germanium N point-contact transistor 85
3.4 References 87
Chapter 4 The PN Diode 91
4.1 PN diode operation and functions 92
4.2 Electronic germanium and silicon production 108
4.3 Appendix: physical basis of PN diode operation 124
4.4 References 130
Chapter 5 The Bipolar Transistor 133
5.1 Transistor operation and functions 134
5.2 Transistor technologies 146
5.3 "Mesa" and "planar" bipolar silicon transistors 157
5.4 Industrial developments 163
5.5 References 170
Chapter 6 The MOSFET Transistor 175
6.1 Features and functions 176
6.2 MOSFET miniaturization and materials 191
6.3 Appendix 203
6.4 References 204
Index of Names 207
Index of Terms 209
Summary of Volume 2 213
