JEE MainPhysicsSemiconductors
An experiment is performed on a two-terminal semiconductor device. The measured values of voltage ( V ) across the device and the corresponding current ( I ) through it are recorded in the table below: V (Volt) 0.7 -2.0 -5.9 -6.0 -6.1 I 10 mA -5 A -5 A -10 mA -30 mA Based on this data, the device is most likely:
Options
- Aa Zener diode which can be used as a voltage regulator
- Ba standard p-n junction diode which can be used as a rectifier
- Ca photodiode which can be used for detecting optical signals
- Da solar cell which can be used to convert solar energy into electricity
Correct answer
A. a Zener diode which can be used as a voltage regulator
Step-by-step solution
From the given table, when the voltage is positive ( 0.7 V ), the current is in milliamperes, indicating normal forward bias behavior. When the voltage is negative, the current is very small ( -5 A ) and remains constant for a range of voltages, which represents the reverse saturation current. At V = -6.0 V , the reverse current suddenly increases to -10 mA and further to -30 mA at -6.1 V . This sharp increase in current at a specific reverse voltage indicates that the device has entered the reverse breakdown regio