Transient Processes in a Diode with a Small-Area Rectifying Contact

Abstract

The earliest experimental investigations of transient processes in semiconductor devices were carried out on point-contact germanium diodes [91–95]. The reduction of the reverse resistance under pulse conditions and the decrease of the rectified current with increasing frequency were observed for these diodes. The first explanations of the experimentally observed strong peaks of the reverse current correctly attributed these peaks to the injection of holes into the base during the flow of the forward current and the return of these holes to the contact when a reverse voltage was applied. Meacham and Michaels [92] introduced the term “charge storage” to describe an increase in the hole density in the base due to the injection of holes by the p-n junction.