Verified Solution • 2025–26 Session moderate

QPages 416-417: Q9: HC Verma: Concepts of Physics - Volume 2 Semiconductors and Semiconductor Devices Pages 416-417: Q9 Solution: The drift current in a reverse-biased p-n junction is increased …

⚠️ Common Exam Traps & Conceptual Pitfalls

Students often blame the rise in reverse‑bias drift current on increased carrier mobility, overlooking that the dominant effect is the exponential increase of intrinsic carrier concentration $n_i$ (and thus minority carrier density) with temperature. Remember that reverse current is a saturation current set by thermally generated electron‑hole pairs in the depletion region, not by majority‑carrier drift.

The drift current in a reverse-biased p-n junction is increased in magnitude if the temperature of the junction is increased. Explain this on the basis of creation of hole-electron pairs.

Step-by-Step Verified Solution

**Answer:** The drift current in a reverse-biased p-n junction increases with temperature because more electron-hole pairs are thermally generated. **Step-by-Step Explanation:** The drift current is due to minority carriers. In reverse bias, the applied voltage supports the flow of minority carriers across the junction. As temperature increases, more electron-hole pairs are thermally generated, increasing the concentration of minority carriers. Hence, the drift current increases .

All Questions in this Chapter

QPage 418: Q1 QPage 418: Q2 QPage 418: Q3 QPage 418: Q4 QPage 418: Q5 QPage 418: Q6 QPage 418: Q7 QPage 418: Q8 QPage 418: Q9 QPage 418: Q10 QPages 416-417: Q1 QPages 416-417: Q2 QPages 416-417: Q3 QPages 416-417: Q4 QPages 416-417: Q5 QPages 416-417: Q6 QPages 416-417: Q7 QPages 416-417: Q8 QPages 416-417: Q9 QPages 416-417: Q10 QPages 416-417: Q11 QPages 417-418: Q1 QPages 417-418: Q2 QPages 417-418: Q3 QPages 417-418: Q4 QPages 417-418: Q5 QPages 417-418: Q6 QPages 417-418: Q7 QPages 417-418: Q8 QPages 417-418: Q9 QPages 417-418: Q10 QPages 417-418: Q11 QPages 417-418: Q12 QPages 417-418: Q13 QPages 417-418: Q14 QPages 417-418: Q15 QPages 419-421: Q1 QPages 419-421: Q2 QPages 419-421: Q3 QPages 419-421: Q4 QPages 419-421: Q5 QPages 419-421: Q6 QPages 419-421: Q7 QPages 419-421: Q8 QPages 419-421: Q9 QPages 419-421: Q10 QPages 419-421: Q11 QPages 419-421: Q12 QPages 419-421: Q13 QPages 419-421: Q14 QPages 419-421: Q15 QPages 419-421: Q16 QPages 419-421: Q17 QPages 419-421: Q18 QPages 419-421: Q19 QPages 419-421: Q20 QPages 419-421: Q21 QPages 419-421: Q22 QPages 419-421: Q23 QPages 419-421: Q24 QPages 419-421: Q25 QPages 419-421: Q26 QPages 419-421: Q27 QPages 419-421: Q28 QPages 419-421: Q29 QPages 419-421: Q30 QPages 419-421: Q31 QPages 419-421: Q32 QPages 419-421: Q33.1 QPages 419-421: Q33.2 QPages 419-421: Q33.3 QPages 419-421: Q34 QPages 419-421: Q35

Related Learning Resources & Exam Preparation

Chapter Practice Bank
Practice all topic-wise questions from Semiconductors and Semiconductor Devices
Reference Textbook Solutions
Explore complete chapter exercises for HC Verma: Concepts of Physics - Volume 2
Competitive PYQ Question Bank
Browse year-wise authentic previous years' questions with solutions
Authentic CBT Mock Tests
Simulate official exam environment with live timer and percentile scoring