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Graph of carbon atoms being brought together to form a diamond crystal, demonstrating formation of the electronic band structure and band gap. The right graph shows the energy levels as a function of the spacing between atoms. When far apart (right side of graph) all the atoms have discrete valence orbitals p and s with the same energies.
In semiconductors, the band gap of a semiconductor can be of two basic types, a direct band gap or an indirect band gap. The minimal-energy state in the conduction band and the maximal-energy state in the valence band are each characterized by a certain crystal momentum (k-vector) in the Brillouin zone. If the k-vectors are different, the ...
Energy band gaps can be classified using the wavevectors of the states surrounding the band gap: Direct band gap: the lowest-energy state above the band gap has the same k as the highest-energy state beneath the band gap. Indirect band gap: the closest states above and beneath the band gap do not have the same k value.
In frequency (and thus energy), UV rays sit between the violet end of the visible spectrum and the X-ray range. The UV wavelength spectrum ranges from 399 nm to 10 nm and is divided into 3 sections: UVA, UVB, and UVC. UV is the lowest energy range energetic enough to ionize atoms, separating electrons from them, and thus causing chemical reactions.
The band-gap energy of semiconductors is frequently determined from a Tauc plot, where the quantity () is plotted against photon energy E. Then the band-gap energy can be obtained by extending the straight segment of the graph to the E axis. [12] There is a simpler method adapted from the Kubelka–Munk theory, in which the band gap is ...
Typically, a Tauc plot shows the quantity hν (the photon energy) on the abscissa (x-coordinate) and the quantity (αhν) 1/2 on the ordinate (y-coordinate), where α is the absorption coefficient of the material. Thus, extrapolating this linear region to the abscissa yields the energy of the optical bandgap of the amorphous material.
Shockley and Queisser calculated that the best band gap for sunlight happens to be 1.1 eV, the value for silicon, and gives a u of 44%. They used blackbody radiation of 6000K for sunlight, and found that the optimum band gap would then have an energy of 2.2 kT s. (At that value, 22% of the blackbody radiation energy would be below the band gap.)
Band-gap model (blue dotted line), the Urbach-tail extension (red dotted line), and the band-gap model with Urbach tail (black solid line). In the solid-state physics of semiconductors, the Urbach tail is an exponential part in the energy spectrum of the absorption coefficient.