Orton J. The Story of Semiconductors

Oxford University Press, 2006. — 524 p. — ISBN: 0-19-853083-8.The book provides an overview of the fascinating spectrum of semiconductor physics, devices and applications, presented from a historical perspective. It covers the development of the subject from its inception in the early nineteenth century to the recent millennium. Written in a lively, informal style, it emphasizes the interaction between pure scientific push and commercial pull, on the one hand, and between basic physics, materials, and devices, on the other. It also sets the various device developments in the context of systems requirements and explains how such developments met wide-ranging consumer demands. It is written so as to appeal to students at all levels in physics, electrical engineering, and materials science, to teachers, lecturers, and professionals working in the field, as well as to a non-specialist scientific readership.Perspectives
The ‘Information Age’
Early materials technology
What makes a semiconductor?
Semiconductor doping
How many semiconductors are there?The cat’s whiskers
Early days
First applications
Commercial semiconductor rectifiers
Early semiconductor physics
The cat’s whisker reborn
Postscript—how things happenMinority rule
The transistor
Ge and Si technology
The physics of Ge and Si
The junction transistorSilicon, silicon, and yet more silicon
Precursor to the revolution
The Metal Oxide Silicon transistor
Semiconductor technology
Wise men from the East
Power and energy—sometimes size is important
Silicon is good for physics, tooThe compound challenge
Why bother?
Gallium arsenide
Crystal growth
Material characterization
Light emitting devices
Microwave devices
Indium-phosphideLow dimensional structures
Small really is beautiful
The two-dimensional electron gas
Mesoscopic systems
Optical properties of quantum wells 2
Electronic devices
Optical devicesLet there be light
Basic principles
Red-emitting alloys
Gallium phosphide
Wide band gap semiconductors
Short wavelength laser diodesCommunicating with light
Fibre optics
Long wavelength sources
Photodetectors
Optical modulators
Recent developmentsSemiconductors in the infrared
The infrared spectral region
Infrared components
Two world wars—and after
Growing sophistication—the 1960s and 1970s
Quantum wells, superlattices, and other modern wonders
Long wavelength lasersPolycrystalline and amorphous semiconductorsPolycrystalline semiconductors
Amorphous semiconductors
Solar cells
Liquid crystal displays
Porous silicon
Bibliograph