depletion region

American  

[di-plee-shuhn ree-juhn] / dɪˈpli ʃən ˈri dʒən /

noun

1. Electronics. Also called depletion layer; depletion zone. an area in which there are few or no carriers of electric charge, formed especially at the junction of unlike zones of conductivity within a semiconductor.

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depletion region Scientific  

/ dĭ-plē′shən /

1. A region in a semiconductor device, usually at the juncture of P-type and N-type materials, in which there is neither an excess of electrons nor of holes. Large depletion regions inhibit current flow.

2. See also semiconductor diode

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Example Sentences

Reanalyzing data from last year, scientists determined that the spacecraft is now in a region it calls the heliosphere depletion region.

From Time • Jun. 28, 2013

Making things messier still, the spacecraft crossed into and out of the heliosphere depletion region no fewer than five times in 2012.

From Time • Jun. 28, 2013

So when will the depletion region truly deplete, fully giving way to cosmos beyond?

From Time • Jun. 28, 2013

Here an n-type semiconductor, such as cadmium sulphide, forms a depletion region when in contact with the p-type absorber.

From Nature • Aug. 15, 2012