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Types of Semiconductors

Types of Semiconductors

Intrinsic semiconductors are highly pure materials with no impurities. At absolute zero, these semiconductors behave as perfect insulators because all the valence electrons are bound, and the conduction band is empty, disallowing electrical conduction. The Fermi level is a concept used to describe the probability of occupancy of energy levels by electrons at thermal equilibrium. In intrinsic semiconductors, the Fermi level is positioned at the midpoint of the energy gap at absolute zero. When...

Semiconductors

Semiconductors

There is variation in the electrical conductivity of materials - metals, semiconductors, and insulators that are showcased with the help of the energy band diagrams.
Metals such as copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), or lead (Pb) have low resistivity and feature conduction bands that are either not fully occupied or overlap with the valence band, making a bandgap non-existent. This allows electrons in the highest energy levels of the valence band to easily transition to the conduction band upon gaining...

Fermi Level Dynamics

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The vacuum level denotes the energy threshold required for an electron to escape from a material surface. It is usually positioned above the conduction band of a semiconductor and acts as a benchmark for comparing electron energies within various materials.
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The work...

Energy Bands in Solids

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Isolated atoms have discrete energy levels that are well described by the Bohr model. And, it quantifies the energy of an electron in a hydrogen atom as En. Higher quantum numbers 'n' yield less negative, closer electron energy levels.
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Metal-Semiconductor Junctions

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The contact of metal and semiconductor can lead to the formation of a junction with either Schottky or Ohmic behavior.
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Band Theory

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When two or more atoms come together to form a molecule, their atomic orbitals combine and molecular orbitals of distinct energies result. In a solid, there are a large number of atoms, and therefore a large number of atomic orbitals that may be combined into molecular orbitals. These groups of molecular orbitals are so closely placed together to form continuous regions of energies, known as the bands.
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Feb 22, 2026

Excitonic Hamiltonians for Calculating Optical Absorption Spectra and Optoelectronic Properties of Molecular Aggregates and Solids

Excitonic Hamiltonians for Calculating Optical Absorption Spectra and Optoelectronic Properties of Molecular Aggregates and Solids

Published on: May 27, 2020

Interlayer excitons in a bulk van der Waals semiconductor.

Ashish Arora¹, Matthias Drüppel², Robert Schmidt¹

¹Institute of Physics and Center for Nanotechnology, University of Münster, Wilhelm-Klemm-Strasse 10, 48149, Münster, Germany.

Nature Communications

|September 23, 2017

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Researchers discovered interlayer excitons in bulk van der Waals semiconductors, crucial for advanced electronic and optical phenomena. This finding explains positive g-factors and enables high-temperature collective behavior studies.

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Last Updated: Feb 22, 2026

Excitonic Hamiltonians for Calculating Optical Absorption Spectra and Optoelectronic Properties of Molecular Aggregates and Solids

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Published on: May 27, 2020

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Ohmic Contact Fabrication Using a Focused-ion Beam Technique and Electrical Characterization for Layer Semiconductor Nanostructures

Ohmic Contact Fabrication Using a Focused-ion Beam Technique and Electrical Characterization for Layer Semiconductor Nanostructures

Published on: December 5, 2015

Area of Science:

Condensed Matter Physics
Materials Science
Semiconductor Physics

Background:

Excitons, bound electron-hole pairs, dictate semiconductor optoelectronic properties.
Interlayer excitons, with spatially separated electron and hole wave functions, are key to phenomena like Bose-Einstein condensation and superfluidity.

Purpose of the Study:

To report the discovery of interlayer excitons in bulk van der Waals semiconductors.
To elucidate the mechanisms behind their formation, specifically strong localization and spin-valley coupling.
To explain the observed positive g-factor and large diamagnetic shift in these materials.

Main Methods:

High-field magneto-reflectance experiments.
Ab initio theoretical calculations.
Investigation of 2H-MoTe₂.

Main Results:

Discovery of interlayer excitons in bulk van der Waals semiconductors.
Identification of strong charge carrier localization and spin-valley coupling as formation mechanisms.
Explanation of positive g-factor and large diamagnetic shift, resolving a long-standing puzzle in transition metal dichalcogenides.

Conclusions:

The study confirms the presence and characteristics of interlayer excitons in bulk van der Waals semiconductors.
This discovery provides a foundation for exploring collective quantum phenomena at higher temperatures.
The findings advance the understanding of charge carrier behavior and optoelectronic properties in layered materials.