Try it on paper first. A hint, the key idea and the worked solution are here when you need them.
A battery of V is joined to a resistor of and a diode in series. First the diode is a silicon diode with a drop of V when it conducts. Find the current in milliampere. Then it is replaced by a germanium diode with a drop of V. Find the current. Last, the silicon diode is turned round. Find the current and the voltage across the diode.
A p-n junction has a depletion layer of width and a barrier . A forward bias lowers the barrier to , and a reverse bias raises it to . The diode equation is , with at 300 K. A conducting silicon diode drops about V.
Have you tried it?
Work it out on paper first. It is fine to get stuck or make a mistake: that is how we learn. When you are ready, go through the solution one step at a time, and check each step against your own.
Step 1. Silicon. mA.
Step 2. Germanium. mA.
Step 3. Reversed. The diode is an open switch, so the current is close to . There is no drop across the resistor, because . The whole battery voltage, V, appears across the diode.
Answer: mA, mA, and V across the reversed diode with almost no current.
Check. The two forward currents differ by less than , because the drops are small against V.
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