conduction band
Americannoun
noun
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The electron orbital or orbitals, generally the outermost orbitals, in atoms in a conductor or semiconductor, in which the electrons are free enough to move and thereby carry an electric current.
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Compare valence band See also bandgap
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Excitons form inside semiconductors when electrons absorb energy and jump from their resting state in the valence band to a higher energy state in the conduction band.
From Science Daily ● Jan. 22, 2026
Unlike the deep defects, they are not located in the middle of the band gap, but very close to the valence or conduction band.
From Science Daily ● Jan. 10, 2024
Only a very small amount of energy is required to move electrons from the valence band to the conduction band in a conductor, and so they conduct electricity well.
From Textbooks ● Feb. 14, 2019
In an insulator, the band gap is so “large” that very few electrons move into the conduction band; as a result, insulators are poor conductors of electricity.
From Textbooks ● Feb. 14, 2019
Electrons move between the trap states and the conduction band, and only free electrons contribute to the steady-state diffusion process.
From Nature ● Aug. 15, 2012
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.