what is semiconductors ?

Question

physics/electronics

Answer 1

A material that is neither a good conductor of electricity (like copper) nor a good insulator (like rubber). The most common semiconductor materials are silicon and germanium. These materials are then doped to create an excess or lack of electrons.
Computer chips, both for CPU and memory, are composed of semiconductor materials. Semiconductors make it possible to miniaturize electronic components, such as transistors. Not only does miniaturization mean that the components take up less space, it also means that they are faster and require less energy.

Answer 2

A semiconductor is a solid whose electrical conductivity can be controlled over a wide range, either permanently or dynamically.

Silicon is the most commercially important semiconductor.

Semiconductors are very similar to insulators. The two categories of solids differ primarily in that insulators have larger band gaps — energies that electrons must acquire to be free to flow. In semiconductors at room temperature, just as in insulators, very few electrons gain enough thermal energy to leap the band gap, which is necessary for conduction. For this reason, pure semiconductors and insulators, in the absence of applied fields, have roughly similar electrical properties. The smaller bandgaps of semiconductors, however, allow for many other means besides temperature to control their electrical properties.

Answer 3

You simply CANNOT beat '..divas' answer above! Wow great job and so concise =) The only thing I can add is that semiconductors or Integrated Circuits transmit or output electricity in non-constant terms which is then interpreted into instruction for an electronic device thereby giving it it's intended functionality.

Answer 4

"Any of a class of solids (as germanium or silicon) whose electrical conductivity is between that of a conductor and that of an insulator in being nearly as great as that of a metal at high temperatures and nearly absent at low temperatures."

The first semiconductors were transistors and diodes. Integrated Circuits (IC's) are also constructed of semiconductor material.

Answer 5

A semiconductor is a solid whose electrical conductivity can be controlled over a wide range, either permanently or dynamically. Semiconductors are tremendously important technologically and economically. Silicon is the most commercially important semiconductor, though dozens of others are important as well.Semiconductor devices, electronic components made of semiconductor materials, are essential in modern electrical devices, from computers to cellular phones to digital audio players.Semiconductors are very similar to insulators. The two categories of solids differ primarily in that insulators have larger band gaps - energies that electrons must acquire to be free to flow. In semiconductors at room temperature, just as in insulators, very few electrons gain enough thermal energy to leap the band gap, which is necessary for conduction. For this reason, pure semiconductors and insulators, in the absence of applied fields, have roughly similar electrical properties. The smaller bandgaps of semiconductors, however, allow for many other means besides temperature to control their electrical properties.Semiconductors' intrinsic electrical properties are very often permanently modified by introducing impurities, in a process known as doping. Usually it is reasonable to approximate that each impurity atom adds one electron or one "hole" that may flow freely. Upon the addition of a sufficiently large proportion of dopants, semiconductors conduct electricity nearly as well as metals. The junctions between regions of semiconductors that are doped with different impurities contain built-in electric fields, which are critical to semiconductor device operation.In addition to permanent modification through doping, the electrical properties of semiconductors are often dynamically modified by applying electric fields. The ability to control conductivity in small and well-defined regions of semiconductor material, both statically through doping and dynamically through the application of electric fields, has led to the development of a broad range of semiconductor devices, like transistors. Semiconductor devices with dynamically controlled conductivity are the building blocks of integrated circuits, like the microprocessor. These "active" semiconductor devices are combined with simpler passive components, such as semiconductor capacitors and resistors, to produce a variety of electronic devices.In certain semiconductors, when electrons fall from the conduction band to the valence band, they often emit light. This photoemission process underlies the light-emitting diode and the semiconductor laser, both of which are very important commercially. Conversely, semiconductor absorption of light in photodetectors excites electrons from the valence band to the conduction band, facilitating reception of fiber optic communications, and providing the basis for energy from solar cells.

Answer 6

substances that absorb almost half of the heat passing through it.

Answer 7

all the above have given the correct answers.......i have nothing to add