Semiconductors are believed to be a special kind of chemical elements. In the first time this unique class was found in the 1890's but more completely it started to be researched just after the First World War in Europe and in Soviet Union. Russian physicists carried out lots of experiments. The results showed that semiconductors may help to generate the fluctuations and maintain them. But such parts as diodes which are utilized nowadays were invented considerably later. First transistor was developed in Bell's laboratory in 1949. That event impacted on the fast development of semiconductor devices. The intensive research of the features of semiconductors was started at the same time.
Many scientists carry out a great deal of researches simply to gain more knowledge about such feature of semiconductors as stimulated emission. First laser system was created with usage of semiconductors. The first variant was based on p - n barriers, the latest ones - on heterojunction.
Today's developers may propose a wide range of different semiconductor devices to their consumers, for example diodes. Today it is impossible to perform any experiments without some modern technologies which are based on use of semiconductors.
Semiconductors are a wide kind of substances that are characterized by the value of conductivity that is situated between the conductivities of metals and isolators. There are several elements which are basically used to develop the semiconductor devices. They are germanium, selenium, silicon, etc.
Scientists haven't been interested in semiconductors for quite a long period of time. Abram Ioffe is a soviet scientist who began performing different researches in field of semiconductors. That genius proposed many techniques of usage of semiconductors and every up to date device is based on these principles. Any semiconductor system has got such basic features as electron and hole conduction. It is dependant on the chemical mixture of the introduced admixtures. To get the characteristics which are needed for the research or proper usage of device some admixtures are added to semiconductors.
The most significant semiconductor devices which are used in technologies are diodes, transistors and thyristors that are based on elements with electron and hole conductions. The broad application of semiconductors began not so long ago but nowadays they are truly broadly used. There are devices based on semiconductors which can convert luminous and heat energy into electric power and vice versa. With help of electricity they may create heat and cold. Such systems as radio receivers, atomic batteries, quantum generator, microprocessors etc include semiconductors. Such devices as current sensors are commonly utilized in any construction connected to the electricity. The weight and overall dimensions of semiconductor devices are considerably smaller than their tube analogues. The analogue devices are not equal if we speak about their reliability and power. Tube falls behind.
We can't imagine how the humanity may exist without a lot of devices that are based on utilizing of semiconductors.