An accurate analytical solution for the two-dimensional minority-carrier current spreading from a forward-biased p-n junction is presented. The structure considered is a very shallow junction on the top of a (infinitely large) substrate of thickness

. The back contact is characterized by a surface recombination velocity

. The solution of the boundary-value problem yields the ratio of the two-dimensional current

to the one-dimensional current

as a function of geometry, of

, and of the minority-carrier diffusion length and mobility. Device implications of the results are discussed.