Electrical Engineering Materials

COURSE OBJECTIVES:
To provide a basic understanding of the electric and magnetic properties of materials used in electrical and electronics engineering.

1.0 Theory of Metals: (6 hours)
1.1 Elementary quantum mechanical ideas
1.2 Free electron theory
1.3 Energy well model of a metal
1.4 Density of states function
1.5 The Fermi-Dirac distribution function
1.6 Thermionic emission
1.7 Work function
1.8 The Fermi level at equilibrium, contact potentials

2.0 Free Electron Theory of Conduction in Metals: (6 hours)
2.1 Thermal velocity of electrons at equilibrium
2.2 Lattice scattering, mean free time between collisions
2.3 Drift velocity of electrons in an electric field
2.4 Diffusion of electrons, diffusion coefficient, Einstein’s relationship between mobility and diffusion coefficients
2.5 Chemical and physical properties of common conducting materials such as Au, Ag, Cu, Al, Mn, Ni, etc.

3.0 Conduction in Liquids and Gases: (2 hours)
3.1 Ionic conduction in electrolytes
3.2 Electrical conduction in gases
3.3 Arc discharges, electric breakdown

4.0 Dielectric Materials: (6 hours)
4.1 Macroscopic effects
4.2 Polarization, dielectric constant
4.3 Dielectric losses, frequency and temperature effects
4.4 Dielectric breakdown
4.5 Ferroelectricity and piezoelectricity
4.6 Properties of common dielectrics such as glass, porcelain, polyethylene, pvc, nylon, bakelite, rubber, mica, transformer oils, etc.

5.0 Magnetic Materials: (8 hours)
5.1 Ferromagnetism, ferrimagnetism, paramagnetism
5.2 Domain structure
5.3 Hysterisis loop, eddy current losses
5.4 Soft magnetic materials
5.5 Fe-si alloys, Ni-Fe alloys
5.6 Ferrites for high frequency transformers
5.7 Square loop materials for magnetic memory, relaxation oscillators
5.8 Hard magnetic materials such as carbon steels, Alnico alloys and barium ferrites

6.0 Semiconducting Materials: (12 hours)
6.1 Band structure of Group IV materials, energy gap
6.2 Density of states function
6.3 Fermi-Dirac distribution function
6.4 Hole and electron densities in an intrinsic crystal
6.5 Effective densities of states, intrinsic concentration
6.6 Fermi level of energy at equilibrium
6.7 Group III and Group IV impurities, acceptors and donors, p and n-type materials
6.8 Energy band diagrams for uniformly-doped and graded p- and n-type materials
6.9 Generation and recombination of electrons and holes, concept of lifetime
6.10 Mobility and diffusion coefficients for electrons and holes in semi conductors
6.11 Transport and continuity equations for electrons and holes
6.12 Concept of diffusion length
6.13 Energy band diagram for a p-n junction, contact potentials
6.14 Metal-semiconductor contacts
6.15 Brief introduction to Crystallography/metallurgy (Phase diagram, transport phenomenon)

7.0 Semiconductor Materials Processing: (5 hours)
7.1 Crystal growing
7.2 Doping by solid state diffusion, ion implantation
7.3 Oxidation
7.4 Photolithography the planar process
7.6 Metallization contacts

Textbooks:
1.0 R.A. Colcaser and S.Diehl-Nagle, “Materials and Devices for Electrical Engineers and Physicists, McGraw-Hill, New York, 1985.
2.0 R.C. Jaeger, “Introduction to Microelectronic Fabrication- - Volume IV”, Addison- Wesley publishing Company, Inc.,1988.