About Solid State Devices (PCECT302)
Solid State Devices (PCECT302) is a third-semester course in the KTU B.Tech 2024 scheme for Electronics and Communication Engineering. It explains the physics inside the devices every electronic circuit is built from: how charge moves in semiconductors, and how p-n junctions, bipolar transistors, metal-semiconductor contacts and MOSFETs actually work. It builds on Physics for Electrical Science (GBPHT121) and supports later subjects like analog circuits and VLSI.
Syllabus
- Module 1: Review of semiconductor physics: equilibrium and steady-state conditions, carrier drift and mobility, the Hall effect, diffusion and the Einstein relations, Poisson and continuity equations, and diffusion length.
- Module 2: P-n junctions (contact potential, charge and field distribution, biasing, energy band diagrams and the ideal diode equation) and bipolar junction transistors.
- Module 3: Metal-semiconductor contacts (ohmic and rectifying) and the ideal MOS capacitor: accumulation, depletion and inversion, C-V characteristics, threshold voltage and body effect.
- Module 4: MOSFETs: the drain current equation in the linear and saturation regions, and drain and transfer characteristics.
Exam pattern
The end-semester exam is for 60 marks: 8 short questions of 3 marks each, plus 4 questions of 9 marks each, one from each module. Internal assessment adds 40 marks.
Study tips
Derivations carry many of the long-answer marks, so practise them in full: continuity equations, contact potential, the diode equation, threshold voltage and the MOSFET drain current. Learn to draw energy band diagrams neatly, practise the numerical problems on carrier concentration and currents, and solve previous question papers to spot repeated questions.
Notes and resources
Find module-wise notes, solved problems, previous year question papers and the syllabus for PCECT302 here, shared by KTU students and teachers.