What is Field Effect Transistor?

Field Effect Transistor is a three terminal unipolar device. It is a voltage controlled device
unlike the BJT which is the current controlled device. FET also have three terminals such as
Drain, Source and Gate. The voltage which is given in the gate terminal as input controls the
current passing through it.
The input voltage is proportional to the output current. The operation of the FET depends on
the electric field, thus it is called as Field Effect Transistor. The advantage of FET is it is smaller
than the BJT, consumes less power when compared to BJT and power dissipation is also less.

What is Junction Field Effect Transistor (JFET)?

JFET is one of the types of FET. It is voltage-controlled device. JFET is used as a voltage-
controlled resistor or switch or as an amplifier. There are two types of JFET namely N-Channel
JFET and P-Channel JFET.
In N channel the generation of the current is due to the movement of electrons, in P channel
the generation of current is due to the movement of holes. Since the movement of electrons
is faster than the movement of holes, N- Channel JFET is preferred more than the P-Channel
JFET.
Symbol of N channel and P channel JFET:
JFET has three terminals Drain, Source and Gate equivalent to Collector, Base and Emitter in
BJT. BJT have PN Junctions but JFET have channels made of either P type or N type. In P-
Channel JFET arrow points outside and in N-Channel JFET arrow points inside.

Three terminals of JFET:

Source: The majority carriers enters the Field Effect transistor through the source terminal.
Gate: By controlling the Gate voltage the flow of majority carriers from Source to drain can
be controlled.
Drain: The majority charge carriers leaves the channel through drain. This current is
designated by the source gate voltage VGS
Channel: The region between source and drain and also between the gate region is called the
channel.

Construction of N channel and P channel JFET:

As it is shown in the figure in P Channel JFET in the P type substrate drain and source terminals
are taken by creating ohmic contacts.
N type material is used at the either side of the channel and the gate terminals are taken from
the N type materials.

In N Channel JFET in the N type substrate drain and source terminals are taken by creating
ohmic contacts and P type material is used at the either side of the channel and the gate
terminals are taken from the P type materials.

The drain and source terminal is taken from the both the sides of the channel. A small voltage
at the Gate terminal controls the current flow between source and drain.
Working of N channel and P channel JFET:

Working of N channel when Bias is zero

The Gate to source voltage controls the flow of current from source to drain. When no gate
to source voltage is applied or when bias is zero the resistance in the channel is low. So when
a small drain to source voltage is applied it causes the current to flow from source to drain.
 Working of N channel when moderate bias is applied

When the gate terminal is reverse biased or when negative gate source voltage is applied the
size of the depletion layer increases and the resistance in the channel increases. Thus it
controls the flow of current in the channel.
 Working of N channel when bias greater than Pinch off is applied

When the reverse bias at the gate terminal is increased the depletion region increases and
they meet at a point of time. This is called Pinch off mode. At this point the source to drain
current is zero, but some reverse saturation current exists. The gate to source voltage at which
Pinch off occurs is called Pinch off voltage.
V-I Characteristics of JFET:
V-I Characteristics of JFET

Ohmic Region:
It is the region when gate source voltage is zero VGS=0
Saturation Region:
In this region JFET is ON and active.
Cut Off Region:
JFET is OFF in this region and there is no drain current flowing.
Breakdown Region:
When the drain voltage exceeds the maximum necessary voltage, current flows from drain to
source without any resistance and the device breakdown and the JFET enters the breakdown
region.
What is MOSFET?

MOSFET stands for Metal Oxide Semiconductor Field Effect Transistor. It is a type of Field
Effect Transistor and it is voltage-controlled device. It is also called as Insulated Gate Field
Effect Transistor (IGFET). It is used for switching or amplifying electronic signals in the
electronic devices. It is the most used transistor and it can be used in both analog and digital
circuits.
Types of MOSFET:

Symbol of MOSFET:
In the Enhancement MOSFET the source and the drain are not connected physically so in the
symbol lines are broken and in the Depletion mode line is continuous. In the N type the arrow
points inside and in the P type arrow points outside.
Construction of MOSFET:
The metallic gate terminal in the MOSFET is insulated from the semiconductor layer by a SiO2
layer or dielectric layer. The MOSFET consists of three terminals, they are source(S), Gate (G),
Drain (D) and the body which is called as substrate. The substrate is connected to the source
internally.

Construction of N channel and P channel Enhancement MOSFET

In N channel Enhancement MOSFET the source and drain are of N type semiconductor which
is heavily doped and the Substrate is of P type semiconductor. Majority charge carriers are
electrons. The source and drain terminals are physically separated in Enhancement mode.

In P channel Enhancement MOSFET the source and drain are of P type semiconductor which
is heavily doped and the Substrate is of N type semiconductor. Majority charge carriers are
holes.
 Construction of N channel and P channel Depletion MOSFET

In the N Channel depletion MOSFET a small strip of semiconductor of N type connects the
source and drain. The source and drain are of N type semiconductor and the Substrate is of P
type semiconductor. Majority charge carriers are electrons. The source and drain are heavily
doped.

In the P Channel depletion MOSFET a small strip of semiconductor of P type connects the
source and drain. The source and drain are of P type semiconductor and the Substrate is of
N type semiconductor. Majority charge carriers are holes.

Working of Enhancement MOSFET:

In the enhancement mode the applied Gate voltage is always positive. When it crosses the
threshold voltage it turns ON. The current is generated due to the movement of majority
carriers. In N channel majority carriers are electrons and in P channel majority carriers are
holes. The source is connected to the negative terminal. When the electrons move from
source to drain the positive charges formed below the dielectric because of the repulsive
force from gate combine with each other.

When the applied gate voltage is increased the number of majority carriers becomes more
than the minority carriers below the dielectric medium. So the majority carriers overcomes
the recombination of holes and electrons and the majority carrier move from source to drain
in the channel, which forms the current. Thus the gate voltage controls the concentration of
the majority carriers which is responsible for the formation of the channel.

Working of Depletion MOSFET:

The depletion MOSFET is ON by default. The source and drain terminals are physically
connected. When the gate terminal is connected to the negative terminal and source to the
positive terminal, the electrons get repelled below the dielectric layer. The positive charged
carrier from the source gets combined with the majority carrier the electrons in the N type
and thus depletion layer is formed and the channel resistance increases and the current flow
decreases. Thus, the increase in gate voltage decreases the drain current. They are inversely
proportional. When the negative voltage is further increased it reaches the pinch off mode.
When the gate is connected to the positive terminal and the source terminal it operates in
the enhancement mode.
V-I Characteristics of MOSFET:

V-I Characteristics of MOSFET

Cut off region:

No current flows through it and the MOSFET is off.
Ohmic region:
Drain current increases when the drain source voltage increases. Used as amplifier in this
region.
Saturation region:
Drain current is constant for drain source voltage. Used as switch in this region. This occurs
when the drain source voltage reaches pinch off voltage.
Depletion mode:
The MOSFET is ON by default. When negative voltage is applied to the gate terminal it
operates in the depletion mode and when positive voltage is applied, it operates in the
enhancement mode.
Enhancement mode:
When positive voltage is applied to the gate terminal, it starts conducting and the current
starts to flow.