Semi-conductor device

Claim 1

A RADIATION-RESPONSIVE CIRCUIT ARRANGEMENT COMPRISING A SEMI-CONDUCTIVE BODY HAVING CLOSELY-SPACED, OPPOSED EMITTER AND COLLECTOR AREA RECTIFYING JUNCTIONS DEFINING, IN THE ORDER NAMED, AN EMITTER REGION, A BASE REGION AND A COLLECTOR REGION AND A CURRENT PATH BETWEEN THE EMITTER AND COLLECTOR JUNCTIONS, A BASE CONNECTION TO SAID BASE REGION AT AN AREA OUTSIDE THE EMITTER-COLLECTOR CURRENT PATH, A SUBSTANTIALLY NON-CONDUCTIVE REGION IN SAID BASE REGION INTERPOSED BETWEEN THE EMITTER REGION AND THE BASE CONNECTION SUCH AT SUBSTANTIALLY THE ENTIRE CURRENT PATH BETWEEN THE EMITTER AND NEARLY UP TO THE COLLECTOR, WHEREBY THE EMITTER-BASE CURRENT PATH IS WITHIN REACH OF AND THUS SUBJECT TO A DEPLETION LAYER EXTENDING FROM THE COLLECTOR JUNCTION, MEANS FOR BIASING THE EMITTER JUNCTION IN THE FORWARD DIRECTION, AND A LOAD CIRCUIT COUPLED TO SAID COLLECTOR REGION AND INCLUDING MEANS FOR APPLYING THERETO A POTENTIAL FOR BIASING SAID COLLECTOR JUNCTION IN THE REVERSE DIRECTION, SAID BASE REGION HAVING A RESISTIVITY AND SAID COLLECTOR POTENTIAL HAVING A VALUE AT WHICH A DEPLETION LAYER IS ESTABLISHED IN THE BASE REGION UP TO THE VICINITY OF THE EMITTER-BASE CURRENT PATH, THEREBY EFFECTIVELY INTERRUPTING THE EMITTER-BASE CURRENT PATH AND REDUCING THE CURRENT IN THE LOAD CIRCUIT TO A MINIMUM, A SURFACE OF SAID SEMI-CONDUCTIVE BODY BEING EXPOSED TO RECEIVE RADIATION THEREBY TO INJECT MINORITY CARRIERS INTO THE BASE REGION TO INCREASE THE LOAD CIRCUIT CURRENT TO A HIGHER VALUE.