Time and field dependence of excess carrier concentration in semiconductors

The time and space distribution of excess carriers in semiconductor devices is derived through the solution of the ambipolar continuity equation. Both build-up of excess carriers due to external excitation and their decay following its termination are presented. A detailed solution for a 1-D photoconductive device with various boundary conditions is obtained. The solution is expanded to the 3-D distribution, where an analytical solution is given for the diffusion region of photodiodes. The procedure for solving the 3-D problem in photoconductor devices is outlined. The derived equations are used to demonstrate the advantages of the "covered electrodes" structure and in order to obtain an accurate value for the ambipolar mobility as measured in a four-probe device.