SCHOTTKY BARRIER DIODE

The Schottky diode (named after German physicist Walter H.

Schottky; also known as hot carrier diode) is a semiconductor diode
with a low forward voltage drop and a very fast switching action.

When current flows through a diode there is a small voltage drop
across the diode terminals. A normal silicon diode has a voltage
drop between 0.61.7 volts, while a Schottky diode voltage drop is
between approximately 0.150.45 volts. This lower voltage drop
can provide higher switching speed and better system efficiency.
CONSTRUCTION
A metalsemiconductor junction is formed between a metal and a
semiconductor, creating a Schottky barrier (instead of a
semiconductorsemiconductor junction as in conventional diodes).
Typical metals used are molybdenum, platinum, chromium or
tungsten; and the semiconductor would typically be N-type
silicon.
The metal side acts as the anode and N-type semiconductor acts as
the cathode of the diode. This Schottky barrier results in both very
fast switching and low forward voltage drop.
Reverse recovery time

The most important difference between the p-n and
Schottky diode is reverse recovery time, when the diode
switches from conducting to non-conducting state. Where
in a p-n diode the reverse recovery time can be in the order
of hundreds of nanoseconds and less than 100 ns for fast
diodes, Schottky diodes do not have a recovery time, as
there is nothing to recover from (i.e. no charge carrier
depletion region at the junction).
The switching time is ~100 ps for the small signal diodes,
and up to tens of nanoseconds for special high-capacity
power diodes. With p-n junction switching, there is also a
reverse recovery current, which in high-power
semiconductors brings increased EMI noise. With
Schottky diodes switching essentially instantly with only
slight capacitive loading, this is much less of a concern.
CONSTRUCTION AND APPLICATIONS
It is often said that the Schottky diode is a "majority
carrier" semiconductor device. This means that if the
semiconductor body is doped n-type, only the n-type
carriers (mobile electrons) play a significant role in normal
operation of the device. The majority carriers are quickly
injected into the conduction band of the metal contact on
the other side of the diode to become free moving
electrons. Therefore no slow, random recombination of n-
and p- type carriers is involved, so that this diode can cease
conduction faster than an ordinary p-n rectifier diode. This
property in turn allows a smaller device area, which also
makes for a faster transition.
This is another reason why Schottky diodes are useful in
switch-mode power converters; the high speed of the diode
means that the circuit can operate at frequencies in the
range 200 kHz to 2 MHz, allowing the use of small
inductors and capacitors with greater efficiency than would
be possible with other diode types. Small-area Schottky
diodes are the heart of RF detectors and mixers, which
often operate up to 50 GHz.

Limitations

The most evident limitations of Schottky diodes are the
relatively low reverse voltage ratings for silicon-metal
Schottky diodes, typically 50 V and below, and a relatively
high reverse leakage current. Some higher-voltage designs
are available; 200V is considered a high reverse voltage.
Reverse leakage current, because it increases with
temperature, leads to a thermal instability issue. This often
limits the useful reverse voltage to well below the actual
rating.
While higher reverse voltages are achievable, they would
be accompanied by higher forward voltage drops,
comparable to other types; such a Schottky diode would
have no advantage

Applications

Voltage clamping
Reverse current and discharge protection
Power supply

7
*Other Two-Terminal Devices


*Schottky Barrier Diodes
Two-Terminal Devices Having A
Single p-n Junction
Schottky
Tunnel
Varactor
Photodiode
Solar Cell
Other Two-Terminal Devices
Of A Different Construction
Photoconductive Cell
LCD (Liquid-Crystal Display)
Thermistor
Schottky-Barrier Diode
*Surface-Barrier/Hot-Carrier Diode

Schottky-Barrier Diode
Areas of Application

Very high frequency range
Lower noise figure
Low-voltage or high-current power supplies
AC-to-DC converters
Radar systems
Schottky TTL logic
Fig. 20.1 Passivated hot-carrier diode
Gold leaf metal contact
Anode (+)
Metal
Silicon dioxide screen
Metal semiconductor junction
Metal contact
Cathode (-)
Fig. 20.2 Comparison of characteristics
of hot-carrier and p-n junction diodes
I
D
V
D
p-n
junction
diode
Hot
carrier
diode
Hot
carrier
diode
p-n
junction
diode
Fig. 20.3 Schottky (hot-carrier) diode:
(a) equivalent circuit; (b) symbol
(a)
Fig. 20.4 Approximate equivalent
circuit for the Schottky diode
Fig. 20.5 Motorola Schottky barrier devices.
(Courtesy Motorola Semiconductor Products, Incorporated
I
O
Average rectified forward current (amperes)
V
RRM
(Volts)
Case
Anode
Cathode
51-02
(DO-7)
Glass
59-04
Plastic
267
Plastic
60
Metal
257
(DO-4)
Metal
257
(DO-5)
Metal
430-2
(DO-21)
Metal
20
M
B
R
0
2
0

I
N
5
8
1
7

M
B
R
1
2
0
P

I
N
5
8
2
0

M
B
R
3
2
0
P

M
B
R
3
2
0
M

I
N
5
8
2
3

I
N
5
8
2
6

M
B
R
1
5
2
0

I
N
5
8
2
9

M
B
R
2
5
2
0

I
N
5
8
3
2

M
B
R
4
0
2
0

M
B
R
4
0
2
0
P
F

30
M
B
R
0
3
0

I
N
5
8
1
8

M
B
R
1
3
0
P

I
N
5
8
2
1

M
B
R
3
3
0
P

M
B
R
3
3
0
M

I
N
5
8
2
4

I
N
5
8
2
7

M
B
R
1
5
3
0

I
N
5
8
3
0

M
B
R
2
5
3
0

I
N
5
8
3
3

M
B
R
4
0
3
0

M
B
R
4
0
3
0
P
F

35
M
B
R
1
3
5
P

M
B
R
3
3
5
P

M
B
R
3
3
5
M

M
B
R
1
5
3
5

M
B
R
2
5
3
5

M
B
R
4
0
3
5

M
B
R
4
0
3
5
P
F

40
I
N
5
8
1
9

M
B
R
1
4
0
P

I
N
5
8
2
2

M
B
R
3
4
0
P

M
B
R
3
4
0
M

I
N
5
8
2
5

I
N
5
8
2
8

M
B
R
1
5
4
0

I
N
5
8
3
1

M
B
R
2
5
3
4

I
N
5
8
3
4

M
B
R
4
0
4
0

I
FSM
(Amps) 5.0 100 50 250 200 500 500 500 500 800 800 800 800 800
T
C
@ Rated I
O
(

C) 85 80 85 80 75 70 50
T
J
Max 125C
Max V
F
@ I
FM
= I
O
Fig 20.6 Characteristics curves for Hewlett-Packard 5082-
2300 series of general-purpose Schottky barrier diodes.
.1
0.1
1
10
100
T = 100C
T = 25C
T = -50C
0 100 200 300 400 700 600 500
I
F
Temperature Coeffiecient
10A -2.3mV/C
100A -1.8mV/C
1.0mA -1.3mV/C
10mA -0.7mV/C
100mA -0.2mV/C
Forward voltage (mV)
F
o
r
w
a
r
d

c
u
r
r
e
n
t

(
m
A
)

I-V Curve Showing Typical Temperature Variation for 5082-2300 Series Schottky Diodes
(a)
50
10
100
500
100
0 5 15 10
Reverse voltage (V)
R
e
v
e
r
s
e

c
u
r
r
e
n
t

(
n
A
)

5082-2300 Series Typical Reverse Current vs. Reverse Voltage at T
A
= 25C
(b)
2900
2303
2301

2302
2305
C
a
p
a
c
i
t
a
n
c
e

(
p
F
)

V
R
-Reverse voltage (V)
5082-2300 Series Typical Capacitance vs. Reverse Voltage at T
A
= 25C
(c)
0 8 16 12 4 20
0.2
0.3
0.6
0.8
1.0
1.2
2900
2303
2301
2302
2305
Schottky diode I-V characteristics
Schottky diode is a metal-semiconductor (MS) diode
Historically, Schottky diodes are the oldest diodes
MS diode electrostatics and the general shape of the MS diode I-
V characteristics are similar to p
+
n diodes, but the details of
current flow are different.
Dominant currents in a p
+
n diode
arise from recombination in the depletion layer under small
forward bias.
arise from hole injection from p
+
side under larger forward
bias.
Dominant currents in a MS Schottky diodes
Electron injection from the semiconductor to the metal.
Current components in a p
+
n and MS Schottky diodes
I
R-G

negligible
dominant
p
+
n
u
B

dominant
I
r-g

negligible
M n-Si
I-V characteristics
kT
*
kT
qV
T A I I I
B A
e where 1 e
2
s s
u

=
|
|
|
.
|

\
|
= A
where u
B
is Schottky barrier height, V
A
is applied voltage, A is
area, and A
*
is Richardsons constant.
The reverse leakage current for a Schottky diode is generally
much larger than that for a p
+
n diode.

Since MS Schottky diode is a majority carrier devices, the
frequency response of the device is much higher than that of
equivalent p
+
n diode.