Adjacent Words

semiconductor definitions

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WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: a substance as germanium or silicon whose electrical conductivity is intermediate between that of a metal and an insulator; its conductivity increases with temperature and in the presence of impurities [syn: semiconductor, semiconducting material]
2: a conductor made with semiconducting material [syn: semiconductor device, semiconductor unit, semiconductor]

Merriam Webster's

noun Date: 1838 any of a class of solids (as germanium or silicon) whose electrical conductivity is between that of a conductor and that of an insulator in being nearly as great as that of a metal at high temperatures and nearly absent at low temperatures

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. a solid substance that is a non-conductor when pure or at a low temperature but has a conductivity between that of insulators and that of most metals when containing a suitable impurity or at a higher temperature and is used in integrated circuits, transistors, diodes, etc.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

also semi-conductor(semiconductors) A semiconductor is a substance used in electronics whose ability to conduct electricity increases with greater heat. N-COUNT