Context:
Foxconn withdrew from a semiconductor joint venture with the Vedanta Group in order to pursue a wider range of development prospects.
What are Semiconductors?
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- Any of a class of crystalline solids intermediate in electrical conductivity between a conductor and an insulator.
- Types –
- Intrinsic semiconductors (pure semiconductors)
- Extrinsic semiconductors (adding impurity or doping)
Doping is the process of adding an impurity to an intrinsic or pure material and the impurity is called a dopant.
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- Applications –
- Electronic devices such as transistors, and integrated circuits.
- Power devices, optical sensors, light emitters, solid-state lasers.
- Advantages: Compactness, reliability, power efficiency, and low cost.
- Examples: Silicon, Germanium, Tin, Selenium, Tellurium, Gallium arsenide, Mercury indium telluride etc.
About India Semiconductor Mission:
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- Launched in 2021.
- Ministry – Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY)
- Nodal agency for the Schemes approved under Semicon India Programme.
- Aim – To provide financial support to companies investing in semiconductors, display manufacturing and design ecosystem.
- 4 schemes –
- Setting up of Semiconductor Fabs in India
- Setting up of Display Fabs in India
- Setting up of Semiconductors facilities in India
- Semicon India Future Design: Design Linked Incentive (DLI) Scheme
Source: The Hindu
Previous Year Question
With reference to solar power production in India, consider the following statements:
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- India is the third largest in the world in the manufacture of silicon wafers used in photovoltaic units.
- The solar power tariffs are determined by the Solar Energy Corporation of India.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
[UPSC Civil Services Exam – 2018 Prelims]
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2
Practice Question
