List of semiconductor materials

Semiconductor materials are nominally small band gap insulators. The defining property of a semiconductor material is that it can be compromised by doping it with impurities that alter its electronic properties in a controllable way. <!-- Or is that what makes it useful for semiconductor devices ? -->

Because of their application in the computer and photovoltaic industry—in devices such as transistors, lasers, and solar cells—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 semiconductors have both advantages and disadvantages. <!-- This is a rather lengthy excursion into GaAs --> 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, which makes possible matching to the wavelengths most efficiently transmitted through 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 cannot 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&nbsp;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 III elemental semiconductors, (B)
• Group IV elemental semiconductors, (C, Si, and Ge)
• Group IV compound semiconductors
• Group VI elemental semiconductors, (Se and Te)
• III–V semiconductors: Crystallizing with high degree of stoichiometry, most can be obtained as both n-type and p-type. Many have high carrier mobilities and direct energy gaps, making them useful for optoelectronics. (See also: Template:III-V compounds.)
• II–VI semiconductors: usually p-type, except ZnTe and ZnO which are n-type
• I–VII semiconductors
• IV–VI semiconductors
• V–VI semiconductors
• II–V semiconductors
• I–III–VI₂ semiconductors
• Oxides
• Layered semiconductors
• Magnetic semiconductors
• Organic semiconductors
• Charge-transfer complexes
• Some of MOFs.
• Others

Compound semiconductors

A compound semiconductor is a semiconductor compound composed of chemical elements of at least two different species. These semiconductors form in periodic table groups 13–15 (old names IIIA-VA). The range of possible formulae is quite broad because these elements can form binary (two elements, e.g. gallium(III) arsenide (GaAs)), ternary (three elements, e.g. indium gallium arsenide (InGaAs)) and quaternary alloys (four elements) such as aluminium gallium indium phosphide (AlInGaP)) alloy and indium arsenide antimonide phosphide (InAsSbP). The properties of III-V compound semiconductors are similar to their group IV counterparts. The higher ionicity in these compounds, and especially in the II-VI compound, tends to increase the fundamental bandgap with respect to the less ionic compounds.

Fabrication

Metalorganic vapor-phase epitaxy (MOVPE) is the most popular deposition technology for the formation of compound semiconducting thin films for devices. It uses ultrapure metalorganics and/or hydrides as precursor source materials in an ambient gas such as hydrogen.

Other techniques of choice include:

• Molecular-beam epitaxy (MBE)
• Hydride vapor-phase epitaxy (HVPE)
• Liquid phase epitaxy (LPE)
• Metal-organic molecular-beam epitaxy (MOMBE)
• Atomic layer deposition (ALD)

Table of semiconductor materials

{| class="wikitable sortable"

|-

! Group !! Elem. !! Material !! Formula !! data-sort-type=number |Band gap (eV) !! Gap type !! Description

|-

| IV || 1 || Silicon || Si ||data-sort-value="1120"| 1.12 || indirect || Excellent thermal conductivity. Superior mechanical and optical properties.

High carrier mobilities and high electric breakdown field at room temperature as excellent electronics characteristics.

Extremely high nanomechanical resonator quality factor.

|-

| IV || 1 || Gray tin, α-Sn || Sn ||data-sort-value="40"| 0 || semimetal || Low temperature allotrope (diamond cubic lattice).

|-

| IV || 2 || Silicon carbide, 3C-SiC || SiC ||data-sort-value="2300"| 2.3 || indirect || Used for early yellow LEDs

|-

| IV || 2 || Silicon carbide, 4H-SiC || SiC ||data-sort-value="3300"| 3.3 || ||

|-

| VI || 1 || Gray (trigonal) selenium || Se ||data-sort-value="1830"| 1.83–2.0 || indirect || Used in selenium rectifiers and solar cells. Band gap depends on fabrication conditions.

|-

| VI || 1 || Red selenium || Se ||data-sort-value="2050"| 2.05 || indirect ||

|-

| VI || 1 || Tellurium || Te ||data-sort-value="330"| 0.33 || ||

|-

| III-V || 2 || Boron nitride, cubic || BN ||data-sort-value="6360"| 6.36 || indirect || Potentially useful for ultraviolet LEDs

|-

| III-V || 2 || Boron nitride, hexagonal || BN ||data-sort-value="5960"| 5.96 || ||

|-

| III-V || 2 || Boron phosphide || BP ||data-sort-value="2100"| 2.1 || indirect ||

|-

| III-V || 2 || Boron arsenide || BAs ||data-sort-value="1820"| 1.82 || direct || Ultrahigh thermal conductivity for thermal management; Resistant to radiation damage, possible applications in betavoltaics.

|-

| III-V || 2 || Boron arsenide || B₁₂As₂ ||data-sort-value="3470"| 3.47 || indirect || Resistant to radiation damage, possible applications in betavoltaics.

|-

| III-V || 2 || Aluminium nitride || AlN ||data-sort-value="6280"| 6.28 || direct ||

|-

| I-VI || 2 || Copper(I) sulfide || Cu₂S ||data-sort-value="1200"| 1.2 || || Mineral galena, 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.

|-

| IV-VI || 2 || Lead telluride || PbTe ||data-sort-value="320"| 0.32 || direct/indirect || Tin sulfide (SnS) is a semiconductor with direct optical band gap of 1.3&nbsp;eV and absorption coefficient above 10⁴ cm⁻¹ for photon energies above 1.3&nbsp;eV. It is a p-type semiconductor whose electrical properties can be tailored by doping and structural modification and has emerged as one of the simple, non-toxic and affordable material for thin film solar cells since a decade.

|-

| IV-VI || 2 || Tin(IV) sulfide || SnS₂ ||data-sort-value="2200"| 2.2 || ||SnS₂ is widely used in gas sensing applications.

|-

| IV-VI || 2 || Tin telluride || SnTe ||data-sort-value="180"| 0.18 || direct || Complex band structure.

|-

| V-VI, layered || 2 || Bismuth telluride || Bi₂Te₃ ||data-sort-value="130"| 0.13 || ||

|-

| II-V || 2 || Cadmium arsenide || Cd₃As₂ ||data-sort-value="0"| 0 || || N-type intrinsic semiconductor. Very high electron mobility. Used in infrared detectors, photodetectors, dynamic thin-film pressure sensors, and magnetoresistors. Recent measurements suggest that 3D Cd₃As₂ is actually a zero band-gap Dirac semimetal in which electrons behave relativistically as in graphene.

|-

| II-V || 2 || Zinc phosphide || Zn₃P₂ ||data-sort-value="1500"| 1.5 || direct || Usually p-type.

|-

| II-V || 2 || Zinc diphosphide || ZnP₂ ||data-sort-value="2100"| 2.1 || ||

|-

| II-V || 2 || Zinc arsenide || Zn₃As₂ ||data-sort-value="1000"| 1.0 || || The lowest direct and indirect bandgaps are within 30 meV or each other.|| indirect || Photocatalytic, n-type

|-

| Oxide || 2 || Titanium dioxide, rutile || TiO₂ ||data-sort-value="3000"| 3.0

|-

| Oxide || 2 || Copper(I) oxide || Cu₂O ||data-sort-value="2170"| 2.17 || || One of the most studied semiconductors. Many applications and effects first demonstrated with it. Formerly used in rectifier diodes, before silicon. P-type semiconductor

|-

| Oxide || 2 || Copper(II) oxide || CuO ||data-sort-value="1200"| 1.2 || || N-type semiconductor.

|-

| Oxide || 2 || Uranium dioxide || UO₂ ||data-sort-value="1300"| 1.3 || || High Seebeck coefficient, resistant to high temperatures, promising thermoelectric and thermophotovoltaic applications. Formerly used in URDOX resistors, conducting at high temperature. Resistant to radiation damage.

|-

| Oxide || 2 || Tin dioxide || SnO₂ ||data-sort-value="3700"| 3.7 || || Oxygen-deficient n-type semiconductor. Used in gas sensors.

|-

| Oxide || 3 || Barium titanate || BaTiO₃ ||data-sort-value="3000"| 3 || || Ferroelectric, piezoelectric. Used in some uncooled thermal imagers. Used in nonlinear optics.

|-

| Oxide || 3 || Strontium titanate || SrTiO₃ ||data-sort-value="3300"| 3.3 || || Ferroelectric, piezoelectric. Used in varistors. Conductive when niobium-doped.

|-

| Oxide || 3 || Lithium niobate || LiNbO₃ ||data-sort-value="4000"| 4 || || Ferroelectric, piezoelectric, shows Pockels effect. Wide uses in electrooptics and photonics.

|-

| Oxide, V-VI || 2 || monoclinic Vanadium(IV) oxide || VO₂ ||data-sort-value="700"| 0.7 || optical || Stable below 67&nbsp;°C

|-

| Layered || 2 || Lead(II) iodide || PbI₂ ||data-sort-value="2400"| 2.4|| || PbI₂ is a layered direct bandgap semiconductor with bandgap of 2.4 eV in its bulk form, whereas its 2D monolayer has an indirect bandgap of ~2.5 eV, with possibilities to tune the bandgap between 1–3 eV

|-

| Layered || 2 || Molybdenum disulfide || MoS₂ ||data-sort-value="1230"| 1.23&nbsp;eV (2H) || indirect ||

|-

| Layered || 2 || Gallium selenide || GaSe ||data-sort-value="2100"| 2.1 || indirect || Photoconductor. Uses in nonlinear optics. Used as 2D-material. Air sensitive.

|-

|Layered

|2

|Indium selenide

|InSe

|data-sort-value="1805"|1.26–2.35 eV || 3 || Gallium manganese arsenide || GaMnAs ||data-sort-value="0"| || ||

|-

| Magnetic, diluted (DMS) || 3 || Lead manganese telluride || PbMnTe ||data-sort-value="0"| || ||

|-

| Magnetic || 4 || Lanthanum calcium manganate || La_0.7Ca_0.3MnO₃||data-sort-value="0"| || || Colossal magnetoresistance

|-

| Magnetic || 2 || Iron(II) oxide || FeO ||data-sort-value="2200"| 2.2|| || Antiferromagnetic. Band gap for iron oxide nanoparticles was found to be 2.2 eV and on doping the band gap found to be increased up to 2.5 eV

|-

| Magnetic || 2 || Nickel(II) oxide || NiO ||data-sort-value="3800"|3.6–4.0 ||direct || Antiferromagnetic

|-

| Magnetic || 2 || Europium(II) oxide || EuO ||data-sort-value="0"| || || Ferromagnetic

|-

| Magnetic || 2 || Europium(II) sulfide || EuS ||data-sort-value="0"| || || Ferromagnetic

|-

| Magnetic || 2 || Chromium(III) bromide || CrBr₃ ||data-sort-value="0"| || ||

|-

| other || 3 || Copper indium selenide, CIS || CuInSe₂ ||data-sort-value="1000"| 1 || direct ||

|-

| other || 3 || Silver gallium sulfide || AgGaS₂ ||data-sort-value="0"| || || Nonlinear optical properties

|-

| other || 3 || Zinc silicon phosphide || ZnSiP₂ ||data-sort-value="2000"|2.0 || direct || Semiconductive in both crystalline and glassy state

|-

| other || 2 || Arsenic sulfide Realgar|| As₄S₄ ||data-sort-value="0"| || || Semiconductive in both crystalline and glassy state

|-

| other || 2 || Platinum silicide || PtSi ||data-sort-value="0"| || || Used in infrared detectors for 1–5&nbsp;μm. Used in infrared astronomy. High stability, low drift, used for measurements. Low quantum efficiency.

|-

| other || 2 || Bismuth(III) iodide || BiI₃ ||data-sort-value="0"| || ||

|-

| other || 2 || Mercury(II) iodide || HgI₂ ||data-sort-value="0"| || || Used in some gamma-ray and x-ray detectors and imaging systems operating at room temperature.

|-

| other || 2 || Thallium(I) bromide || TlBr ||data-sort-value="2680"| 2.68 || || 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 || 2 || Silver sulfide || Ag₂S ||data-sort-value="900"| 0.9 || ||

|- other ||3|| Carbon nitride || C3N4||data-sort-value="0"|

| other || 2 || Iron disulfide || FeS₂ ||data-sort-value="950"| 0.95 || || Mineral pyrite. Used in later cat's whisker detectors, investigated for solar cells.

|-

| other || 4 || Copper zinc tin sulfide, CZTS || Cu₂ZnSnS₄ ||data-sort-value="1490"| 1.49 || direct ||Cu₂ZnSnS₄ is derived from CIGS, replacing the Indium/Gallium with earth abundant Zinc/Tin.

|-

| other || 4 || Copper zinc antimony sulfide, CZAS || Cu_1.18Zn_0.40Sb_1.90S_7.2 ||data-sort-value="2200"| 2.2 || direct ||Copper zinc antimony sulfide is derived from copper antimony sulfide (CAS), a famatinite class of compound.

|-

| other || 3 || Copper tin sulfide, CTS || Cu₂SnS₃ ||data-sort-value="910"| 0.91

|-

| IV || 2 || Silicon-tin || Si_1−xSn_x ||data-sort-value="1000"| 1.0 ||data-sort-value="1110"| 1.11 || indirect || Adjustable band gap.

|-

| III-V || 3 || Aluminium gallium arsenide || Al_xGa_1−xAs ||data-sort-value="1420"| 1.42 ||data-sort-value="2160"| 2.16 ||data-sort-value="0"| 0 || || Various applications in optoelectronics (incl. photovoltaics), electronics and thermoelectrics.

|-

| other || 4 || Copper indium gallium selenide, CIGS || Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ ||data-sort-value="1000"| 1 ||data-sort-value="1700"| 1.7 || direct || CuIn_xGa_1–xSe₂. Polycrystalline. Used in thin film solar cells.

|}

See also

• Heterojunction
• Organic semiconductors
• Semiconductor characterization techniques

References