Handbook of Silicon Based MEMS Materials and Technologies

1.1.4. Electrical Properties

Silicon is a group IV element in the periodic table and is a semiconductor with a bandgap of 1.12 eV, which means that pure silicon at room temperature is almost an insulator. By doping with group III or group V elements, the resistivity of silicon can be varied over a wide range.

1.1.4.1. Introduction—Dopants and Impurities in Silicon

Semiconductors are solid materials that have electrical conductivities in between those of conductors and those of insulators. The physical reason causing a material to behave as a conductor, semiconductor, or insulator lies in the availability, or lack thereof, of free current carriers in the material. Semiconductors are characterized by the narrow bandgap between the valence bands, ...