Transistor

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A transistor is a semiconductor device used to amplify and switch electronic

signals and electrical power. It is composed of semiconductor material with at
least three terminals for connection to an external circuit. A voltage or current
applied to one pair of the transistor's terminals changes the current through
another pair of terminals. Because the controlled (output) power can be higher
than the controlling (input) power, a transistor can amplify a signal. Today, some
transistors are packaged individually, but many more are found embedded in
integrated circuits.

The transistor is the fundamental building block of modern electronic devices,

and is ubiquitous in modern electronic systems. Following its development in
1947 by John Bardeen, Walter Brattain, and William Shockley, the transistor
revolutionized the field of electronics, and paved the way for smaller and cheaper
radios, calculators, and computers, among other things. The transistor is on the Assorted discrete transistors.
list of IEEE milestones in electronics, and the inventors were jointly awarded the Packages in order from top
1956 Nobel Prize in Physics for their achievement. to bottom: TO-3, TO-126,
TO-92, SOT-23.

Contents
1 History
2 Importance
3 Simplified operation
3.1 Transistor as a switch
3.2 Transistor as an amplifier
4 Comparison with vacuum tubes
4.1 Advantages
4.2 Limitations
5 Types
5.1 Bipolar junction transistor (BJT)
5.2 Field-effect transistor (FET)
5.3 Usage of bipolar and field-effect transistors
5.4 Other transistor types
6 Part numbering standards / specifications
6.1 Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS)
6.2 European Electronic Component Manufacturers Association (EECA)
6.3 Joint Electron Devices Engineering Council (JEDEC)
6.4 Proprietary
6.5 Naming problems
7 Construction
7.1 Semiconductor material
7.2 Packaging
7.2.1 Power capability
8 See also
9 Directory of external websites with datasheets
10 References
11 Further reading
12 External links
History
Main article: History of the transistor

The thermionic triode, a vacuum tube invented in 1907, propelled the

electronics age forward, enabling amplified radio technology and long-
distance telephony. The triode, however, was a fragile device that
consumed a lot of power. Physicist Julius Edgar Lilienfeld filed a patent
for a field-effect transistor (FET) in Canada in 1925, which was intended
to be a solid-state replacement for the triode.[1][2] Lilienfeld also filed
identical patents in the United States in 1926[3] and 1928.[4][5] However,
Lilienfeld did not publish any research articles about his devices nor did
his patents cite any specific examples of a working prototype. Because
the production of high-quality semiconductor materials was still decades
away, Lilienfeld's solid-state amplifier ideas would not have found
A replica of the first working
practical use in the 1920s and 1930s, even if such a device had been
transistor.
built.[6] In 1934, German inventor Oskar Heil patented a similar
device.[7]

From November 17, 1947 to December 23, 1947, John Bardeen and
Walter Brattain at AT&T's Bell Labs in the United States, performed
experiments and observed that when two gold point contacts were applied
to a crystal of germanium, a signal was produced with the output power
greater than the input.[8] Solid State Physics Group leader William
Shockley saw the potential in this, and over the next few months worked
to greatly expand the knowledge of semiconductors. The term transistor
was coined by John R. Pierce as a portmanteau of the term "transfer
resistor".[9][10] According to Lillian Hoddeson and Vicki Daitch, authors
of a biography of John Bardeen, Shockley had proposed that Bell Labs'
John Bardeen, William Shockley and first patent for a transistor should be based on the field-effect and that he
Walter Brattain at Bell Labs, 1948. be named as the inventor. Having unearthed Lilienfeld’s patents that went
into obscurity years earlier, lawyers at Bell Labs advised against
Shockley's proposal because the idea of a field-effect transistor that used an electric field as a "grid" was not
new. Instead, what Bardeen, Brattain, and Shockley invented in 1947 was the first point-contact transistor.[6] In
acknowledgement of this accomplishment, Shockley, Bardeen, and Brattain were jointly awarded the 1956 Nobel
Prize in Physics "for their researches on semiconductors and their discovery of the transistor effect."[11]

In 1948, the point-contact transistor was independently invented by German physicists Herbert Mataré and
Heinrich Welker while working at the Compagnie des Freins et Signaux, a Westinghouse subsidiary located in
Paris. Mataré had previous experience in developing crystal rectifiers from silicon and germanium in the German
radar effort during World War II. Using this knowledge, he began researching the phenomenon of "interference"
in 1947. By witnessing currents flowing through point-contacts, similar to what Bardeen and Brattain had
accomplished earlier in December 1947, Mataré by June 1948, was able to produce consistent results by using
samples of germanium produced by Welker. Realizing that Bell Labs' scientists had already invented the
transistor before them, the company rushed to get its "transistron" into production for amplified use in France's
telephone network.[12]

The first high-frequency transistor was the surface-barrier germanium transistor developed by Philco in 1953,
capable of operating up to 60 MHz.[13] These were made by etching depressions into an N-type germanium base
from both sides with jets of Indium(III) sulfate until it was a few ten-thousandths of an inch thick. Indium
electroplated into the depressions formed the collector and emitter.[14][15] The first all-transistor car radio, which
was produced in 1955 by Chrysler and Philco, used these transistors in its circuitry and also they were the first
suitable for high-speed computers.[16][17][18][19]

The first working silicon transistor was developed at Bell Labs on January 26, 1954 by Morris Tanenbaum.[20]
The first commercial silicon transistor was produced by Texas Instruments in 1954.[21] This was the work of
Gordon Teal, an expert in growing crystals of high purity, who had previously worked at Bell Labs.[22] The first
MOS transistor actually built was by Kahng and Atalla at Bell Labs in
1960.[23]

Importance
The transistor is the key active component in practically all modern
electronics. Many consider it to be one of the greatest inventions of the
20th century.[24] Its importance in today's society rests on its ability to be
mass-produced using a highly automated process (semiconductor device
fabrication) that achieves astonishingly low per-transistor costs. The
invention of the first transistor at Bell Labs was named an IEEE
Milestone in 2009.[25]
Philco surface-barrier transistor
Although several companies each produce over a billion individually
developed and produced in 1953
packaged (known as discrete) transistors every year,[26] the vast majority
of transistors are now produced in integrated circuits (often shortened to
IC, microchips or simply chips), along with diodes, resistors, capacitors
and other electronic components, to produce complete electronic circuits.
A logic gate consists of up to about twenty transistors whereas an
advanced microprocessor, as of 2009, can use as many as 3 billion
transistors (MOSFETs).[27] "About 60 million transistors were built in
2002 ... for [each] man, woman, and child on Earth."[28]

The transistor's low cost, flexibility, and reliability have made it a

ubiquitous device. Transistorized mechatronic circuits have replaced A Darlington transistor opened up so
electromechanical devices in controlling appliances and machinery. It is the actual transistor chip (the small
often easier and cheaper to use a standard microcontroller and write a square) can be seen inside. A
computer program to carry out a control function than to design an Darlington transistor is effectively
equivalent mechanical control function. two transistors on the same chip. One
transistor is much larger than the
Simplified operation other, but both are large in
comparison to transistors in large-
The essential usefulness of a transistor comes from its ability to use a scale integration because this
small signal applied between one pair of its terminals to control a much particular example is intended for
larger signal at another pair of terminals. This property is called gain. A power applications.
transistor can control its output in proportion to the input signal; that is, it
can act as an amplifier. Alternatively, the transistor can be used to turn current on or off in a circuit as an
electrically controlled switch, where the amount of current is determined by other circuit elements.

There are two types of transistors, which have slight differences in how they are used in a circuit. A bipolar
transistor has terminals labeled base, collector, and emitter. A small current at the base terminal (that is,
flowing between the base and the emitter) can control or switch a much larger current between the collector and
emitter terminals. For a field-effect transistor, the terminals are labeled gate, source, and drain, and a voltage at
the gate can control a current between source and drain.

The image to the right represents a typical bipolar transistor in a circuit. Charge will flow between emitter and
collector terminals depending on the current in the base. Because internally the base and emitter connections
behave like a semiconductor diode, a voltage drop develops between base and emitter while the base current
exists. The amount of this voltage depends on the material the transistor is made from, and is referred to as VBE.

Transistor as a switch
Transistors are commonly used as electronic switches, both for high-power applications such as switched-mode
power supplies and for low-power applications such as logic gates.

In a grounded-emitter transistor circuit, such as the light-switch circuit shown, as the base voltage rises, the
emitter and collector currents rise exponentially. The collector voltage drops because of reduced resistance from
collector to emitter. If the voltage difference between the collector and
emitter were zero (or near zero), the collector current would be limited
only by the load resistance (light bulb) and the supply voltage. This is
called saturation because current is flowing from collector to emitter
freely. When saturated, the switch is said to be on.[29]

Providing sufficient base drive current is a key problem in the use of

bipolar transistors as switches. The transistor provides current gain,
allowing a relatively large current in the collector to be switched by a
much smaller current into the base terminal. The ratio of these currents
varies depending on the type of transistor, and even for a particular type,
varies depending on the collector current. In the example light-switch
circuit shown, the resistor is chosen to provide enough base current to A simple circuit diagram to show the
ensure the transistor will be saturated. labels of a n–p–n bipolar transistor.

In any switching circuit, values of input voltage would be chosen such

that the output is either completely off,[30] or completely on. The transistor is acting
as a switch, and this type of operation is common in digital circuits where only "on"
and "off" values are relevant.

Transistor as an amplifier
The common-emitter amplifier is designed so that a small change in voltage (Vin) BJT used as an electronic
switch, in grounded-
changes the small current through the base of the transistor; the transistor's current
amplification combined with the properties of the circuit mean that small swings in emitter configuration.
Vin produce large changes in Vout.

Various configurations of single transistor amplifier are possible, with some

providing current gain, some voltage gain, and some both.

From mobile phones to televisions, vast numbers of products include

amplifiers for sound reproduction, radio transmission, and signal processing.
The first discrete-transistor audio amplifiers barely supplied a few hundred
milliwatts, but power and audio fidelity gradually increased as better
transistors became available and amplifier architecture evolved.

Modern transistor audio amplifiers of up to a few hundred watts are common

and relatively inexpensive. Amplifier circuit, common-emitter
configuration with a voltage-
divider bias circuit.
Comparison with vacuum tubes
Prior to the development of transistors, vacuum (electron) tubes (or in the UK "thermionic valves" or just
"valves") were the main active components in electronic equipment.

Advantages
The key advantages that have allowed transistors to replace their vacuum tube predecessors in most applications
are

No power consumption by a cathode heater.

Small size and minimal weight, allowing the development of miniaturized electronic devices.
Low operating voltages compatible with batteries of only a few cells.
No warm-up period for cathode heaters required after power application.
Lower power dissipation and generally greater energy efficiency.
Higher reliability and greater physical ruggedness.
Extremely long life. Some transistorized devices have been in service for more than 50 years.
Complementary devices available, facilitating the design of complementary-symmetry circuits, something
not possible with vacuum tubes.
Insensitivity to mechanical shock and vibration, thus avoiding the problem of microphonics in audio
applications.

Limitations

Silicon transistors can age and fail.[31]

High-power, high-frequency operation, such as that used in over-the-air television broadcasting, is better
achieved in vacuum tubes due to improved electron mobility in a vacuum.
Solid-state devices are more vulnerable to Electrostatic discharge in handling and operation
A vacuum tube momentarily overloaded will just get a little hotter; solid-state devices have less mass to
absorb the heat due to overloads, in proportion to their rating
Sensitivity to radiation and cosmic rays (special radiation hardened chips are used for spacecraft devices).
Vacuum tubes create a distortion, the so-called tube sound, that some people find to be more tolerable to
the ear.[32]

Types
Transistors are categorized by

Semiconductor material (date first used): the

metalloids germanium (1947) and silicon (1954)— PNP P-channel
in amorphous, polycrystalline and monocrystalline
form; the compounds gallium arsenide (1966) and
silicon carbide (1997), the alloy silicon-germanium
(1989), the allotrope of carbon graphene (research
ongoing since 2004), etc.—see Semiconductor
NPN N-channel
material
Structure: BJT, JFET, IGFET (MOSFET),
insulated-gate bipolar transistor, "other types"
Electrical polarity (positive and negative): n–p–n,
BJT JFET
p–n–p (BJTs); n-channel, p-channel (FETs)
Maximum power rating: low, medium, high
BJT and JFET symbols
Maximum operating frequency: low, medium,
high, radio (RF), microwave frequency (the
maximum effective frequency of a transistor is denoted by the term , an abbreviation for transition
frequency—the frequency of transition is the frequency at which the transistor yields unity gain)
Application: switch, general purpose, audio, high voltage, super-beta, matched pair
Physical packaging: through-hole metal, through-hole plastic, surface mount, ball grid array, power
modules—see Packaging
 Amplification factor hfe, βF
(transistor beta)[33] or gm
(transconductance).
P-channel
Thus, a particular transistor may
be described as silicon, surface-
mount, BJT, n–p–n, low-power,
high-frequency switch.
N-channel
Bipolar junction transistor
(BJT)
JFET MOSFET enh MOSFET dep
Main article: Bipolar junction
transistor
JFET and IGFET symbols
Bipolar transistors are so named
because they conduct by using both majority and minority carriers. The bipolar junction transistor, the first type
of transistor to be mass-produced, is a combination of two junction diodes, and is formed of either a thin layer of
p-type semiconductor sandwiched between two n-type semiconductors (an n–p–n transistor), or a thin layer of n-
type semiconductor sandwiched between two p-type semiconductors (a p–n–p transistor). This construction
produces two p–n junctions: a base–emitter junction and a base–collector junction, separated by a thin region of
semiconductor known as the base region (two junction diodes wired together without sharing an intervening
semiconducting region will not make a transistor).

BJTs have three terminals, corresponding to the three layers of semiconductor—an emitter, a base, and a
collector. They are useful in amplifiers because the currents at the emitter and collector are controllable by a
relatively small base current."[34] In an n–p–n transistor operating in the active region, the emitter–base junction
is forward biased (electrons and holes recombine at the junction), and electrons are injected into the base region.
Because the base is narrow, most of these electrons will diffuse into the reverse-biased (electrons and holes are
formed at, and move away from the junction) base–collector junction and be swept into the collector; perhaps
one-hundredth of the electrons will recombine in the base, which is the dominant mechanism in the base current.
By controlling the number of electrons that can leave the base, the number of electrons entering the collector can
be controlled.[34] Collector current is approximately β (common-emitter current gain) times the base current. It is
typically greater than 100 for small-signal transistors but can be smaller in transistors designed for high-power
applications.

Unlike the field-effect transistor (see below), the BJT is a low–input-impedance device. Also, as the base–emitter
voltage (Vbe) is increased the base–emitter current and hence the collector–emitter current (Ice) increase
exponentially according to the Shockley diode model and the Ebers-Moll model. Because of this exponential
relationship, the BJT has a higher transconductance than the FET.

Bipolar transistors can be made to conduct by exposure to light, because absorption of photons in the base region
generates a photocurrent that acts as a base current; the collector current is approximately β times the
photocurrent. Devices designed for this purpose have a transparent window in the package and are called
phototransistors.

Field-effect transistor (FET)

Main articles: Field-effect transistor, MOSFET, and JFET

The field-effect transistor, sometimes called a unipolar transistor, uses either electrons (in n-channel FET) or
holes (in p-channel FET) for conduction. The four terminals of the FET are named source, gate, drain, and body
(substrate). On most FETs, the body is connected to the source inside the package, and this will be assumed for
the following description.

In a FET, the drain-to-source current flows via a conducting channel that connects the source region to the drain
region. The conductivity is varied by the electric field that is produced when a voltage is applied between the
gate and source terminals; hence the current flowing between the drain and source is controlled by the voltage
applied between the gate and source. As the gate–source voltage (Vgs) is increased, the drain–source current (Ids)
increases exponentially for Vgs below threshold, and then at a roughly quadratic rate ( )
(where VT is the threshold voltage at which drain current begins)[35] in the "space-charge-limited" region above
threshold. A quadratic behavior is not observed in modern devices, for example, at the 65 nm technology
node.[36]

For low noise at narrow bandwidth the higher input resistance of the FET is advantageous.

FETs are divided into two families: junction FET (JFET) and insulated gate FET (IGFET). The IGFET is more
commonly known as a metal–oxide–semiconductor FET (MOSFET), reflecting its original construction from
layers of metal (the gate), oxide (the insulation), and semiconductor. Unlike IGFETs, the JFET gate forms a p–n
diode with the channel which lies between the source and drain. Functionally, this makes the n-channel JFET the
solid-state equivalent of the vacuum tube triode which, similarly, forms a diode between its grid and cathode.
Also, both devices operate in the depletion mode, they both have a high input impedance, and they both conduct
current under the control of an input voltage.

Metal–semiconductor FETs (MESFETs) are JFETs in which the reverse biased p–n junction is replaced by a
metal–semiconductor junction. These, and the HEMTs (high-electron-mobility transistors, or HFETs), in which a
two-dimensional electron gas with very high carrier mobility is used for charge transport, are especially suitable
for use at very high frequencies (microwave frequencies; several GHz).

Unlike bipolar transistors, FETs do not inherently amplify a photocurrent. Nevertheless, there are ways to use
them, especially JFETs, as light-sensitive devices, by exploiting the photocurrents in channel–gate or channel–
body junctions.

FETs are further divided into depletion-mode and enhancement-mode types, depending on whether the channel is
turned on or off with zero gate-to-source voltage. For enhancement mode, the channel is off at zero bias, and a
gate potential can "enhance" the conduction. For the depletion mode, the channel is on at zero bias, and a gate
potential (of the opposite polarity) can "deplete" the channel, reducing conduction. For either mode, a more
positive gate voltage corresponds to a higher current for n-channel devices and a lower current for p-channel
devices. Nearly all JFETs are depletion-mode because the diode junctions would forward bias and conduct if
they were enhancement-mode devices; most IGFETs are enhancement-mode types.

Usage of bipolar and field-effect transistors

The bipolar junction transistor (BJT) was the most commonly used transistor in the 1960s and 70s. Even after
MOSFETs became widely available, the BJT remained the transistor of choice for many analog circuits such as
amplifiers because of their greater linearity and ease of manufacture. In integrated circuits, the desirable
properties of MOSFETs allowed them to capture nearly all market share for digital circuits. Discrete MOSFETs
can be applied in transistor applications, including analog circuits, voltage regulators, amplifiers, power
transmitters and motor drivers.

Other transistor types

Bipolar junction transistor
Heterojunction bipolar transistor, up to several hundred GHz, common in modern ultrafast and RF
circuits
Schottky transistor
Avalanche transistor
 Darlington transistors are two BJTs connected together to provide a high current gain equal to the
product of the current gains of the two transistors.
Insulated-gate bipolar transistors (IGBTs) use a medium-power IGFET, similarly connected to a
power BJT, to give a high input impedance. Power diodes are often connected between certain
terminals depending on specific use. IGBTs are particularly suitable for heavy-duty industrial
applications. The Asea Brown Boveri (ABB)
5SNA2400E170100 illustrates just how far power
semiconductor technology has advanced.[37] Intended
for three-phase power supplies, this device houses
three n–p–n IGBTs in a case measuring 38 by 140 by
190 mm and weighing 1.5 kg. Each IGBT is rated at
1,700 volts and can handle 2,400 amperes.
Photo transistor
Multiple-emitter transistor, used in transistor–
transistor logic
Multiple-base transistor, used to amplify very-low-
level signals in noisy environments such as the
pickup of a record player or radio front ends. Transistor symbol drawn on Portuguese
Effectively, it is a very large number of transistors in pavement in the University of Aveiro.
parallel where, at the output, the signal is added
constructively, but random noise is added only stochastically.[38]
Field-effect transistor
Carbon nanotube field-effect transistor (CNFET)
JFET, where the gate is insulated by a reverse-biased p–n junction
MESFET, similar to JFET with a Schottky junction instead of a p–n junction
High-electron-mobility transistor (HEMT, HFET, MODFET)
MOSFET, where the gate is insulated by a shallow layer of insulator
Inverted-T field-effect transistor (ITFET)
FinFET, source/drain region shapes fins on the silicon surface.
FREDFET, fast-reverse epitaxial diode field-effect transistor
Thin-film transistor, in LCDs.
Organic field-effect transistor (OFET), in which the semiconductor is an organic compound
Ballistic transistor
Floating-gate transistor, for non-volatile storage.
FETs used to sense environment
Ion-sensitive field effect transistor (IFSET), to measure ion concentrations in solution.
EOSFET, electrolyte-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor (Neurochip)
DNAFET, deoxyribonucleic acid field-effect transistor
Diffusion transistor, formed by diffusing dopants into semiconductor substrate; can be both BJT and FET
Unijunction transistors can be used as simple pulse generators. They comprise a main body of either P-
type or N-type semiconductor with ohmic contacts at each end (terminals Base1 and Base2). A junction
with the opposite semiconductor type is formed at a point along the length of the body for the third
terminal (Emitter).
Single-electron transistors (SET) consist of a gate island between two tunneling junctions. The tunneling
current is controlled by a voltage applied to the gate through a capacitor.[39]
Nanofluidic transistor, controls the movement of ions through sub-microscopic, water-filled channels.[40]
Multigate devices
Tetrode transistor
Pentode transistor
Trigate transistors (Prototype by Intel)
Dual-gate FETs have a single channel with two gates in cascode; a configuration optimized for
high-frequency amplifiers, mixers, and oscillators.
Junctionless nanowire transistor (JNT), developed at Tyndall National Institute in Ireland, was the first
transistor successfully fabricated without junctions. (Even MOSFETs have junctions, although its gate is
electrically insulated from the region the gate controls.) Junctions are difficult and expensive to fabricate,
 and, because they are a significant source of current leakage, they waste significant power and generate
significant waste heat. Eliminating them held the promise of cheaper and denser microchips. The JNT uses
a simple nanowire of silicon surrounded by an electrically isolated "wedding ring" that acts to gate the
flow of electrons through the wire. This method has been described as akin to squeezing a garden hose to
gate the flow of water through the hose. The nanowire is heavily n-doped, making it an excellent
conductor. Crucially the gate, comprising silicon, is heavily p-doped; and its presence depletes the
underlying silicon nanowire thereby preventing carrier flow past the gate.
Vacuum-channel transistor: In 2012, NASA and the National Nanofab Center in South Korea were
reported to have built a prototype vacuum-channel transistor in only 150 nanometers in size, can be
manufactured cheaply using standard silicon semiconductor processing, can operate at high speeds even in
hostile environments, and could consume just as much power as a standard transistor.[41]

Part numbering standards / specifications

The types of some transistors can be parsed from the part number. There are three major semiconductor naming
standards; in each the alphanumeric prefix provides clues to type of the device.

Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS)

The JIS-C-7012 specification for transistor part
JIS Transistor Prefix Table
numbers starts with "2S",[42] e.g. 2SD965, but
Prefix Type of transistor
sometimes the "2S" prefix is not marked on the
package – a 2SD965 might only be marked "D965"; a 2SA high-frequency p–n–p BJTs
2SC1815 might be listed by a supplier as simply 2SB audio-frequency p–n–p BJTs
"C1815". This series sometimes has suffixes (such as
2SC high-frequency n–p–n BJTs
"R", "O", "BL"... standing for "Red", "Orange", "Blue"
etc.) to denote variants, such as tighter hFE (gain) 2SD audio-frequency n–p–n BJTs
groupings. 2SJ P-channel FETs (both JFETs and MOSFETs)
2SK N-channel FETs (both JFETs and MOSFETs)
European Electronic Component
Manufacturers Association (EECA)
The Pro Electron standard, the European Electronic Component Manufacturers Association part numbering
scheme, begins with two letters: the first gives the semiconductor type (A for germanium, B for silicon, and C for
materials like GaAs); the second letter denotes the intended use (A for diode, C for general-purpose transistor,
etc.). A 3-digit sequence number (or one letter then 2 digits, for industrial types) follows. With early devices this
indicated the case type. Suffixes may be used, with a letter (e.g. "C" often means high hFE, such as in:
BC549C[43]) or other codes may follow to show gain (e.g. BC327-25) or voltage rating (e.g. BUK854-800A[44]).
The more common prefixes are:

Pro Electron / EECA Transistor Prefix Table

Prefix Type and
Example Equivalent Reference
class usage
Germanium
small-signal
AC AC126 NTE102A Datasheet (http://www.weisd.com/store2/NTE102A.pdf)
AF
transistor
Germanium
AD AF power AD133 NTE179 Datasheet (http://www.weisd.com/store2/nte179.pdf)
transistor
Germanium
AF small-signal AF117 NTE160 Datasheet (http://www.weisd.com/store2/nte160.pdf)
RF
transistor

Germanium
AL RF power ALZ10 NTE100 Datasheet (http://www.weisd.com/store2/nte100.pdf)
transistor
Germanium
AS switching ASY28 NTE101 Datasheet (http://www.weisd.com/store2/NTE101.pdf)
transistor
Germanium
power
AU switching AU103 NTE127 Datasheet (http://www.weisd.com/store2/nte127.pdf)
transistor

Silicon,
small-signal
BC transistor BC548 2N3904 Datasheet (http://www.fairchildsemi.com/ds/BC/BC547.pdf)
("general
purpose")
Silicon,
BD power BD139 NTE375 Datasheet (http://www.fairchildsemi.com/ds/BD/BD135.pdf)
transistor
Silicon, RF
(high Datasheet (http://www.onsemi.com/pub_link/Collateral/BF245A-
BF BF245 NTE133
frequency) D.PDF)
BJT or FET
Silicon,
switching
BS transistor BS170 2N7000 Datasheet (http://www.fairchildsemi.com/ds/BS/BS170.pdf)
(BJT or
MOSFET)
Silicon,
high
frequency, Datasheet
BL BLW60 NTE325
high power (http://www.datasheetcatalog.org/datasheet/philips/BLW60.pdf)
(for
transmitters)
Silicon,
high voltage
(for CRT Datasheet
BU BU2520A NTE2354
horizontal (http://www.datasheetcatalog.org/datasheet/philips/BU2520A.pdf)
deflection
circuits)
Gallium
Arsenide
small-signal
CF CF739 — Datasheet (http://www.kesun.com/pdf/rf%20transistor/CF739.pdf)
Microwave
transistor
(MESFET)
Gallium
Arsenide
CL Microwave CLY10 — Datasheet
power (http://www.datasheetcatalog.org/datasheet/siemens/CLY10.pdf)
transistor
(FET)

Joint Electron Devices Engineering Council (JEDEC)

The JEDEC EIA370 transistor device numbers usually start with "2N", indicating a three-terminal device (dual-
gate field-effect transistors are four-terminal devices, so begin with 3N), then a 2, 3 or 4-digit sequential number
with no significance as to device properties (although early devices with low numbers tend to be germanium).
For example 2N3055 is a silicon n–p–n power transistor, 2N1301 is a p–n–p germanium switching transistor. A
letter suffix (such as "A") is sometimes used to indicate a newer variant, but rarely gain groupings.

Proprietary
Manufacturers of devices may have their own proprietary numbering system, for example CK722. Note that a
manufacturer's prefix (like "MPF" in MPF102, which originally would denote a Motorola FET) now is an
unreliable indicator of who made the device. Some proprietary naming schemes adopt parts of other naming
schemes, for example a PN2222A is a (possibly Fairchild Semiconductor) 2N2222A in a plastic case (but a
PN108 is a plastic version of a BC108, not a 2N108, while the PN100 is unrelated to other xx100 devices).

Military part numbers sometimes are assigned their own codes, such as the British Military CV Naming System.

Manufacturers buying large numbers of similar parts may have them supplied with "house numbers", identifying
a particular purchasing specification and not necessarily a device with a standardized registered number. For
example, an HP part 1854,0053 is a (JEDEC) 2N2218 transistor[45][46] which is also assigned the CV number:
CV7763[47]

Naming problems
With so many independent naming schemes, and the abbreviation of part numbers when printed on the devices,
ambiguity sometimes occurs. For example two different devices may be marked "J176" (one the J176 low-power
Junction FET, the other the higher-powered MOSFET 2SJ176).

As older "through-hole" transistors are given surface-mount packaged counterparts, they tend to be assigned
many different part numbers because manufacturers have their own systems to cope with the variety in pinout
arrangements and options for dual or matched n–p–n+p–n–p devices in one pack. So even when the original
device (such as a 2N3904) may have been assigned by a standards authority, and well known by engineers over
the years, the new versions are far from standardized in their naming.

Construction
Semiconductor material
The first BJTs were made from germanium (Ge). Silicon (Si) types currently predominate but certain advanced
microwave and high-performance versions now employ the compound semiconductor material gallium arsenide
(GaAs) and the semiconductor alloy silicon germanium (SiGe). Single element semiconductor material (Ge and
Si) is described as elemental.

Rough parameters for the most common semiconductor materials used to make transistors are given in the table
to the right; these parameters will vary with increase in temperature, electric field, impurity level, strain, and
sundry other factors.
The junction
Semiconductor material characteristics
forward voltage
is the voltage Junction forward Electron mobility Hole mobility Max.
Semiconductor
applied to the voltage 2/(V·s) @ 25 °C m2/(V·s) @ 25 °C junction temp.
material m
V @ 25 °C °C
emitter–base
junction of a Ge 0.27 0.39 0.19 70 to 100
BJT in order to Si 0.71 0.14 0.05 150 to 200
make the base
GaAs 1.03 0.85 0.05 150 to 200
conduct a
specified
current. The Al-Si junction 0.3 — — 150 to 200
current increases
exponentially as the junction forward voltage is increased. The values given in the table are typical for a current
of 1 mA (the same values apply to semiconductor diodes). The lower the junction forward voltage the better, as
this means that less power is required to "drive" the transistor. The junction forward voltage for a given current
decreases with increase in temperature. For a typical silicon junction the change is −2.1 mV/°C.[48] In some
circuits special compensating elements (sensistors) must be used to compensate for such changes.

The density of mobile carriers in the channel of a MOSFET is a function of the electric field forming the channel
and of various other phenomena such as the impurity level in the channel. Some impurities, called dopants, are
introduced deliberately in making a MOSFET, to control the MOSFET electrical behavior.

The electron mobility and hole mobility columns show the average speed that electrons and holes diffuse through
the semiconductor material with an electric field of 1 volt per meter applied across the material. In general, the
higher the electron mobility the faster the transistor can operate. The table indicates that Ge is a better material
than Si in this respect. However, Ge has four major shortcomings compared to silicon and gallium arsenide:

Its maximum temperature is limited;

it has relatively high leakage current;
it cannot withstand high voltages;
it is less suitable for fabricating integrated circuits.

Because the electron mobility is higher than the hole mobility for all semiconductor materials, a given bipolar n–
p–n transistor tends to be swifter than an equivalent p–n–p transistor. GaAs has the highest electron mobility of
the three semiconductors. It is for this reason that GaAs is used in high-frequency applications. A relatively
recent FET development, the high-electron-mobility transistor (HEMT), has a heterostructure (junction between
different semiconductor materials) of aluminium gallium arsenide (AlGaAs)-gallium arsenide (GaAs) which has
twice the electron mobility of a GaAs-metal barrier junction. Because of their high speed and low noise, HEMTs
are used in satellite receivers working at frequencies around 12 GHz.

Max. junction temperature values represent a cross section taken from various manufacturers' data sheets. This
temperature should not be exceeded or the transistor may be damaged.

Al–Si junction refers to the high-speed (aluminum–silicon) metal–semiconductor barrier diode, commonly
known as a Schottky diode. This is included in the table because some silicon power IGFETs have a parasitic
reverse Schottky diode formed between the source and drain as part of the fabrication process. This diode can be
a nuisance, but sometimes it is used in the circuit.

Packaging
See also: Semiconductor package and Chip carrier

Discrete transistors are individually packaged transistors. Transistors come in many different semiconductor
packages (see image). The two main categories are through-hole (or leaded), and surface-mount, also known as
surface-mount device (SMD). The ball grid array (BGA) is the latest surface-mount package (currently only for
large integrated circuits). It has solder "balls" on the underside in place of leads. Because they are smaller and
have shorter interconnections, SMDs have better high-frequency characteristics but lower power rating.

Transistor packages are made of glass, metal, ceramic, or plastic. The

package often dictates the power rating and frequency characteristics.
Power transistors have larger packages that can be clamped to heat sinks
for enhanced cooling. Additionally, most power transistors have the
collector or drain physically connected to the metal enclosure. At the
other extreme, some surface-mount microwave transistors are as small as
grains of sand. Assorted discrete transistors

Often a given transistor type is available in several packages. Transistor

packages are mainly standardized, but the assignment of a transistor's functions to the terminals is not: other
transistor types can assign other functions to the package's terminals. Even for the same transistor type the
terminal assignment can vary (normally indicated by a suffix letter to the part number, q.e. BC212L and
BC212K).

Power capability

Values in the following table are for continuous maximum power and vary from device to device.

Packaging Approx. power Power range

SOT-23 0.3W 0.2-0.5W[49][50][51]
TO-92 0.5W 0.4-1W[52][53][54][55]
TO-126 (SOT-32) 40W 12.5W-40W[56][57][58]
TO-220 80W 40-350W[59][60][61][62][63]
TO-247 100W 70-370W[64][65][66]
TO-3 200W 100-714W[67][68][69][70][71][72]

See also
Band gap
Digital electronics
Moore's law
Semiconductor device modeling
Transistor count
Transistor model
Transresistance
Very-large-scale integration

Directory of external websites with datasheets

2N3904 (http://www.onsemi.com/pub/Collateral/2N3903-D.PDF)/2N3906
(http://www.onsemi.com/pub/Collateral/2N3906-D.PDF), BC182
(http://www.onsemi.com/pub/Collateral/BC182-D.PDF)/BC212
(http://www.onsemi.com/pub/Collateral/BC212-D.PDF) and BC546
(http://www.onsemi.com/pub/Collateral/BC546-D.PDF)/BC556
(http://www.onsemi.com/pub/Collateral/BC556B-D.PDF): Ubiquitous, BJT, general-purpose, low-power,