Question

The reverse saturation current for a Germanium diode at a temperature of 293 K is found to be 2 μA. What is the reverse saturation current Is at a temperature of 313 K?

(a) 2 μA

(b) 8 μA

(c) 4 μA

(d) Can’t be determined

I got this question in an interview.

My question is taken from Diode Basics and Equivalent Circuits in chapter Diode Circuit of Analog Circuits

Answer 1

Right answer is (b) 8 μA

To elaborate: The reverse saturation current for a silicon diode doubles its value for every 10 K rise in temperature. Hence Is at 313 K=2 x 2 x 2 = 8 uA.