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The Schottky diodes unlike the semiconductor diode that has a P-N juntion, has an N-Metal junction.
These diodes are characterized by their switching speed and low voltage drop when they are forward biased (typically 0.25 to 0.4 volts).
The Schottky diode behaves allmost like the ideal diode unlike the common semiconductor diode, however, the Schottky diode has some features that make it impossible to use in power applications.
Schottky diode Features:
- The Schottky diode has small current flow capacity when it is forward biased (the current flows in direction of the arrow of the diode).
So this diode can not be used as a rectifier diode. There are rectification processes (eg power supplies) where the amount of current that the diode must conduct is quite large.
- The Schottky diode does not withstand large voltages when it is reverse biased (VCRR).
However Schottky diode has a large number of applications in high-speed circuits like computers circuits where high speeds are needed for switching.
Also, the Schottky diode, when it is forward biased it has low voltage drop causing small energy comsumption.
The Schottky diode symbol is showed on the following diagram.
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