p-type semiconductor
- noun
- /piː taɪp ˌsɛmkənˈdʌktər/
- Specialized
:
semiconductor tipo p
- In a p-type semiconductor, the flow of current occurs mainly through the movement of holes.
Examples
-
Silicon that has been doped with column-III elements is called a p-type semiconductor; that doped with column-V elements is called an n-type semiconductor.
Academic text (1993) -
This type of semiconductor is referred to as a "P" type semiconductor. The two layers, shown in Figure 1, are placed together in the cell.
Academic text (2011) -
A p-type semiconductor is created by doping silicon with elements from group III of the periodic table.
-
The performance of electronic devices can be enhanced by using p-type semiconductors in their design.
Surface Forms
Morphology
p-type + semiconductor
The headword is compositionally built from 'semiconductor' (clear) and the classifier pattern 'X-type' where 'type' signals a category; this structural pattern is transparent. However, interpreting 'p' as 'positive' (meaning conduction by holes) is technical knowledge not guaranteed at B1, so the precise physical meaning is not fully derivable by an average B1 learner.
Etymology
P-type semiconductor comes from the idea that the material has more 'positive' carriers called 'holes' than electrons. Think of a 'hole' as an empty seat that moves and carries electric current, so a p-type semiconductor conducts mainly by those 'holes', not by electrons.
