BMM 2433

Electric & Electronics Technology

Faculty of Mechanical Engineering

 Topic 10:
Diodes
 Content
1. Analyze the p-n junction and the semiconductor
diode.
2. Recognize and familiarize with the diode equation
and i-v characteristics.
3. Apply and analyze various circuit models of the
semiconductor diode in simple circuit, half-wave
and full-wave rectifier circuit.
 THE p-n JUNCTION
• Semiconductors are materials having electrical properties falling
somewhere between those of conducting and of insulating
materials.

As an example, consider the conductivity of three common

materials.
Copper, a good conductor, has a conductivity of 0.59 × 106 S/cm;
Glass, a common insulator, may range between 10−16 -10−13 S/cm;
Silicon, a semiconductor, has a conductivity that varies from 10−8
-10−1 S/cm.

• S = siemens (unit) = mho (G = 1/R)

• Semiconductor technology rarely employs pure, or
intrinsic, semiconductors. To control the number of
charge carriers in a semiconductor, the process of
doping is usually employed.

• Doping consists of adding impurities to the crystalline

structure of the semiconductor. The amount of these
impurities is controlled, and the impurities can be of
one of two types.
• The elements providing the impurities are called
donors, since they “donate” an additional free
electron to the lattice structure.

• However, an additional hole is created by the doping

element, which is called an acceptor, since it accepts
a free electron from the structure and generates a
hole in doing so.
• Semiconductors doped with donor elements conduct
current predominantly by means of free electrons
and are therefore called n-type semiconductor.
• When an acceptor element is used as the dopant,
holes constitute the most common carrier, and the
resulting semiconductor is said to be a p-type
semiconductor.
 THE p-n JUNCTION
AND THE SEMICONDUCTOR DIODE

• When a section of p-type material and a section of n-

type material are brought in contact to form a p-n
junction, a number of interesting properties arise.
• The p-n junction forms the basis of the
semiconductor diode, a widely used circuit element.
 THE p-n JUNCTION

The depletion region is a small section, the mobile charge carriers

(holes and free electrons) come into contact with each other and
recombine.

The charge separation therefore causes a contact potential to

exist at the junction. This potential is typically on the order of a few
tenths of a volt and depends on the material (about 0.6 to 0.7 V for
silicon). The contact potential is also called the offset voltage, V 
The contact potential is also called the offset voltage about 0.6 to 0.7
V (for silicon)
• The phenomenon of Zener breakdown is related to
avalanche breakdown.
• It is usually achieved by means of heavily doped
regions in the neighborhood of the metal-
semiconductor junction (the ohmic contact). The
high density of charge carriers provides the means
for a substantial reverse breakdown current to be
sustained, at a nearly constant reverse bias, the
Zener voltage, Vz
Apply and analyze various circuit models of the semiconductor diode:
- simple circuit
- half-wave rectifier circuit
- full-wave rectifier circuit.
TYPICAL DIODES
Diode Limiting and Clamping Circuits

 Diode Limiters
 Diode Clampers
• Diode circuits, called limiters or clippers, are
sometimes used to clip off portions of signal voltages
above or below certain levels.

• Another type of diode circuit, called a clamper, is

used to add or restore a dc level to an electrical
signal.
 DIODE LIMITERS
 Diode limiter (also called clipper), is used to limit or
clip the input voltage to certain level.
 The output voltage can be determined by the voltage
divider,R1 and the load resistor, RL.

 RL 
Vout    Vin
 R1  RL 
Limiting of the positive alternation
Limiting of the negative alternation
Example
 BIASED LIMITERS
 The level to which an ac voltage is limited can be
adjusted by adding a bias voltage, VBIAS, in series with
the diode.

 Two types of biased limiter:

Positive limiter
Negative limiter
A positive limiter

A negative limiter
 By turning the diode around, the positive limiter can
be modified to limit the output voltage to the portion
of the input voltage waveform above VBIAS – 0.7 V.
 Similarly, the negative limiter can be modified
to limit the output voltage to the portion of the
input voltage waveform below -VBIAS + 0.7 V.
Example
 VOLTAGE-DIVIDER BIAS
• The bias voltage sources can be replaced by a
resistive voltage divider in order to illustrate the
basic operation of diode limiters.
• The bias voltage is set by the resistor values
according to the voltage-divider formula.

 R3 
VBIAS    VSUPPLY
 R2  R3 
Diode limiters implemented with voltage-divider bias
Example
 DIODE CLAMPERS
• A clamper adds a dc level to an ac voltage.
• Clampers are sometimes known as dc restorers.
• There are positive clamper operation and negative
clamper operation.
Positive clamper operation
• When the input voltage initially goes negative, the
diode is forward-biased, allowing the capacitor to
charge to near the peak of the input (Vp(in) – 0.7 V).
• Just after the negative peak, the diode is reverse-
biased.
• The capacitor can only discharge through the high
resistance of RL.
• So, from the peak of one negative half-cycle to the
next, the capacitor discharges very little.
• The amount that is discharged depends on the value
of RL.
• The net effect of the clamping action is that the
capacitor retains a charge approximately equal to the
peak value of the input less the diode drop.
• The capacitor voltage acts essentially as a battery in
series with the input voltage.
• The dc voltage of the capacitor adds to the input
voltage by superposition.
• If the diode is turned around, a negative dc voltage is
added to the input voltage to produce the output
voltage.

Negative clamper operation

Half-Wave Rectifiers

 The Basic DC Power Supply

 The Half-Wave Rectifiers
 Effect of the Barrier Potential on the Half-Wave Rectifier
Output
 Half-Wave Rectifier with Transformer-Coupled Input
Voltage
 THE BASIC DC POWER SUPPLY
• The DC power supply converts the standard 110 V or 220
V, 60 Hz AC available at wall outlets into a constant DC
voltage.
• Rectifier converts the ac input voltage to a pulsating DC
voltage, which is half-wave rectified in Fig (a).
• A block diagram for a complete power supply is shown in
Fig (b).
• The filter eliminates the fluctuations in the rectified
voltage and produces a relatively smooth dc voltage.
• The regulator is a circuit that maintains a constant DC
voltage for variations in the integrated circuits.
 THE HALF-WAVE RECTIFIER
 When a diode is connected to an AC source and to a load
resistor, RL, a half-wave rectifier is formed.
 When the sinusoidal input voltage (Vin) goes positive, the diode
is forward-biased and conducts current through the load
resistor (Fig a).
 The current produces an output voltage across the load RL,
which has the same shape as the positive half-cycle of the input
voltage.
 When the input voltage goes negative during the second half of
its cycle, the diode is reversed-biased.
 There is no current, so the voltage across the load resistor is 0 V
(Fig b).
THE HALF-WAVE RECTIFIER (continued)
 The next result is that only the positive half-
cycles of the ac input voltage appear across the
load.
 Since the output does not change polarity, it is
a pulsating dc voltage with a frequency of 60 Hz
(Fig c).
AVERAGE VALUE OF THE HALF-WAVE OUTPUT
VOLTAGE

Average value of the half-wave output voltage

Vp
VAVG

Example
 EFFECT OF THE BARRIER POTENTIAL ON THE
HALF-WAVE RECTIFIER OUTPUT
 During the positive half-cycle, the input voltage must
overcome the barrier potential before the diode
becomes forward-biased.
 This results in a half-wave output with a peak value
that is 0.7 V less than the peak value of the input as
shown in the next figure.
 The expression for the peak output voltage is

V
p
(

V
out
) p
(
in
)
0
.
7V
 HALF-WAVE RECTIFIER WITH TRANSFORMER-
COUPLED INPUT VOLTAGE
 A transformer is often used to couple the AC input voltage
from the source to the rectifier.
 Transformer coupling provides two advantages:
i. It allows the source voltage to be stepped down as
needed.
ii. The AC source is electrically isolated from the rectifier,
thus preventing a shock hazard in the secondary circuit.
 As we know that the secondary voltage of a transformer equals
to
V
sec
nV
pri

 We will define that the turns ratio as the ratio (n) of secondary
turns, Nsec, to the primary turns, Npri.
Nsec
n
Npri

 If n>1, the secondary voltage is greater than the primary voltage.

 If n<1, the secondary voltage is less than the primary voltage.
 If n=1, then Vsec = Vpri
 The peak secondary voltage, Vp(sec), in a transformer-coupled
half-wave rectifier is the same as Vp(in) in previous equation.

V
p
(

V
out
) p
0
.
7V
(sec)
 Example
Determine the peak value of the output voltage in
the figure below if the turns ratio is 0.5.
Full-Wave Rectifiers

 The Center-Tapped Full-Wave Rectifier

 The Bridge Full-Wave Rectifier
 FULL-WAVE RECTIFIERS
• A full-wave rectifier allows unidirectional (one-way) current
through the load during the entire 360° of the input cycle,
whereas a half-wave rectifier allows current through the load
during one-half of the cycle.
• The result of full-wave rectification is an output voltage with a
frequency twice that pulsates every half-cycle of the input.
 The number of positive alternations that make up the
full-wave rectified voltage is twice that of the half-wave
voltage for the same time interval.
 The average value for a full-wave rectified sinusoidal
voltage is twice that of the half-wave.
2Vp
VAVG

 VAVG is approximately 63.7% of Vp for a full-wave rectified
voltage.
 Example
Find the average value of the full-wave rectified
voltage in the figure.

Solution:
 THE CENTER-TAPPED FULL-WAVE
RECTIFIER
 A center-tapped rectifier is a type of full-wave rectifier
that uses two diodes connected to the secondary of a
center-tapped transformer.
 The input voltage is coupled through the transformer to the
center-tapped secondary.

 Half of the total secondary voltage appears between the

center tap and each end of the secondary winding.

 For a positive half-cycle of the input voltage, the polarities of

the secondary voltages are as shown in the next figure.
 This condition forward-biases diode D1 and reverse-biases
diode D2.

 The current path is through D1 and the load resistor, RL.

 For a negative half-cycle of the input voltage, the voltage

polarities on the secondary are as shown in the next figure.
 This condition reverse-biases D1 and forward-biases D2.

 The current path is through D2 and the load resistor, RL.

 Because the output current during both the positive and

negative portions of the input cycle is the same direction
through the load, the output voltage developed across the
load resistor is a full-wave rectified dc voltage.
 EFFECT OF THE TURNS RATIO ON THE OUTPUT
VOLTAGE
 If the transformer’s turns ratio is 1, the peak value of the
rectified output voltage equals half the peak value of the
primary input voltage less the barrier potential.
 Half of the primary voltage appears across each half of the
secondary winding (Vp(sec) = Vp(pri)).

 In order to obtain an output voltage with a peak equal to the

input peak (less the diode drop), a step-up transformer with a
turns ratio of n=2 must be used.

 In this case, the total secondary voltage (Vsec) is twice the

primary voltage (2Vpri), so the voltage across each half of the
secondary is equal to Vpri.
 In any case, the output voltage of a center-tapped full-wave
rectifier is always one-half of the total secondary voltage less
the diode drop, no matter what the turns ratio.

Vsec
Vout 0.7V
2
THE BRIDGE FULL-WAVE RECTIFIER
 The bridge rectifier uses four diodes connected as shown in
the figure.
 When the input cycle is positive (part a), diodes D1 and D2 are
forward-biased and conduct current in the direction shown.

 A voltage is developed across RL that looks like the positive

half of the input cycle.

 During this time, diodes D3 and D4 are reverse-biased.

 When the input cycle is negative (part b), diodes D3
and D4 are forward-biased and conduct current in the
same direction through RL as during the positive half-
cycle.
 During the negative half-cycle, D1 and D2 are reverse-
biased.
 A full-wave rectified output voltage appears across RL
as a result of this action.
 BRIDGE OUTPUT VOLTAGE
 During the positive half-cycle of the total secondary
voltage, diodes D1 and D2 are forward-biased.
 Neglecting the diode drops, the secondary voltage
appears across the load resistor.
 The same is true when D3 and D4 are forward-biased
during the negative half-cycle.
 In figure b, two diodes are always in series with
the load resistor during both the positive and
negative half-cycles.

 If these diode drops are taken into account, the

output voltage is

V p ( out )  V p (sec)  1.4 V

POWER SUPPLY FILTERS AND REGULATORS

• A power supply filter ideally eliminates the

fluctuations in the output voltage of a half-wave or
full-wave rectifier and produces a constant-level dc
voltage.
• Filtering is necessary because electronic circuits
require a constant source of dc voltage and current
to provide power and biasing for proper operation.
• Filters are implemented with capacitors.
• Voltage regulation in power supplies is usually
done with integrated circuit voltage regulators.
• A voltage regulator prevents changes in the
filtered dc voltage due to variations in input
voltage or load.
 CAPACITOR-INPUT FILTER
• A half-wave rectifier with a capacitor-input filter is shown in
the next figure.
• A filter is simply a capacitor connected from the rectifier
output to ground.
• RL represents the equivalent resistance of a load.
• During the positive first quarter-cycle of the input, the diode
is forward-biased, allowing the capacitor to charge within 0.7
V of the input peak.
• When the input begins to decrease below its peak, the
capacitor retains its charge and the diode becomes reverse-
biased because the cathode becomes more positive than the
anode.
• During the remaining part of the cycle, the capacitor can
discharge only through the load resistance at a rate
determined by the RLC time constant, which is normally long
compared to the period of the input.

• The larger the time constant, the less the capacitor will
discharge.
 During the first quarter of the next cycle, the diode will again
become forward-biased when the input voltage exceeds the
capacitor voltage by approximately 0.7 V.
 RIPPLE VOLTAGE
• The variation in the capacitor voltage due to charging and
discharging is called the ripple voltage.

• Generally, ripple is undesirable; thus, the smaller the ripple,

the better the filtering action.
• For a given input frequency, the output frequency of
a full-wave rectifier is twice that of a half-wave
rectifier.
• This makes the full-wave rectifier easier to filter
because of the shorter time between peaks.
• When filtered, the full-wave rectified voltage has a
smaller ripple than does the half-wave voltage for
the same load resistance and capacitor values.
• The capacitor discharges less during the shorter
interval between full-wave pulses.
Comparison of ripple voltages for half-wave rectified voltages with the same filter capacitor
and load and derived from the same sinusoidal input voltage.
 RIPPLE FACTOR
• The ripple factor (r) is an indication of the
effectiveness of the filter and is defined as

V r ( pp )
r Where;
V DC
Vr(pp) – peak-to-peak ripple voltage

VDC – dc (average) value of the filter’s

output voltage
• The lower the ripple factor, the better the filter.
• The ripple factor can be lowered by increasing the
value of the filter capacitor or increasing the load
resistance.
• For a full-wave rectifier with a capacitor-input filter,
approximations for the peak-to-peak ripple voltage,
Vr(pp), and the dc value of the filter output voltage,
VDC, are given in the following expressions.

• The variable Vp(rect) is the unfiltered peak rectified

voltage.
  1 
V )
r(pp

fR 
Vp(rect
)
 LC

 1 
V
DC
1 
 2fR 
Vp(rect
)
 LC
Example