Surface photovoltage

Surface photovoltage (SPV) measurements are a widely used method to determine the minority carrier diffusion length of semiconductors. Since the transport of minority carriers determines the behavior of the p-n junctions that are ubiquitous in semiconductor devices, surface photovoltage data can be very helpful in understanding their performance. As a contactless method, SPV is a popular technique for characterizing poorly understood compound semiconductors where the fabrication of ohmic contacts or special device structures may be difficult.