Semiconducor diode - 'p-n' juncion diode

The most basic property of a junction diode is that it conducts an electric current in one direction and blocks it in the other. This behaviour arises from the electrical characteristics of a junction, called a ‘p – n juncion’, fabricated within a semiconductor crystal. The most commonly used semiconductor material is silicon. The junction diode is useful in a wide variety of applications including the rectification of ac signals, the detection of radio signals, the conversion of solar power to electricity, and in the generation and detection of light. It also finds use in a variety of electronic circuits as a switch, as a voltage reference or even as a tunable capacitor. The p-n junction is also the basic building block of a host of other electronic devices, of which the most well-known is the junction transistor. For this reason, a study of the properties and behaviour of the p-n junction is important.