photodioden.
/ˈfəʊtəʊˌdʌɪəʊd/, U.S. /ˈfoʊdoʊˌdaɪoʊd/ Electronics.
A semiconductor diode which generates a potential difference when illuminated, or whose electrical resistance depends on the degree of illumination.
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the world > matter > physics > solid state physics > semiconductivity > semiconductor diode > [noun]
crystal rectifier1907
diode1919
varistor1937
photodiode1945
crystal diode1946
junction rectifier1951
junction diode1952
Zener diode1952
Zener1958
tunnel diode1959
light-emitting diode1962
Shockley diode1962
LED1968
Schottky diode1968
OLED1996
1945 S. Benzer Photoelectr. Effects in Germanium (U.S. Dept. of Commerce, Office of Publication Board PB 28644) 3 In exploring germanium samples for their rectification at different points, uncommon current-voltage characteristics are sometimes observed. There are two types which are of particular interest because of their sensitivity to light... K. Lark-Horovitz has given the descriptive names ‘photodiode’ and ‘photopeak’ to these characteristics.
1959 Control Feb. 95/2 It is a logical step from the photodiode to the p-n-p phototransistor.
1962 Jrnl. Optical Soc. Amer. 52 1237/1 Large-area photodiodes have been in use for a number of years as solar cells for the conversion of solar radiation to electrical power.
1971 Nature 20 Aug. 540/1 The photometers are protected from excessive light levels by protective photodiodes which disconnect the high voltage supply at times when the light level is above a minimum value.
1997 T3 Jan. 102/2 A CD player..reads the disc by shining a laser onto the surface of the disc and detecting whether the light is reflected onto the photodiode in the read head.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2006; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1945