Carrier jam effect
The ( charge ) carrier accumulation effect (TSE) occurs, among other things, in electronic components such as thyristor and triac and is a hazard for them.
When the applied valve voltage crosses zero, there are still charge carriers in the barrier layers and for this reason a current flows even if the voltage is already polarized in the reverse direction. Once all charge carriers have been removed, this current is cut off. A voltage peak is induced at inductances that may be in the circuit due to this steep change in current ( ). These voltage peaks occur periodically (see alternating current ) and are superimposed on the operating voltage, which endangers the semiconductor layers. The voltage is applied as reverse voltage and can destroy the component through avalanche breakdown .
Before overvoltage, triggered e.g. B. by the carrier jam effect, semiconductor valves are protected by appropriately sized RC circuits (series connection of ohmic resistor and capacitor ). This RC circuit is parallel to the thyristor or triac and is also known as a snubber .
The carrier jam effect is specifically exploited in components such as charge storage diodes , storage switching diodes or PIN diodes.