EEN2056 Physical Electronics

Trimester 2 2012/13

Tutorial 2

Mobility and conductivity 1. Calculate the drift mobility and the mean scattering time of conduction electrons in copper at room temperature, given that the conductivity of copper is 5.910 5 1cm1. The density of copper is 8.96 gcm3 and its atomic mass is 63.5 gmol1. [43.4 cm2V1s1, 2.51014 s]

2. What is the applied electric field that will impose a drift velocity to 0.1 % of the mean speed ve (~106 ms1) of conduction electrons in copper? What is the corresponding current density and current through a Cu wire of diameter 1 mm? [230kVm 1; 1.4107 Amm2, 1.1107 A]

3. Gold is in the same group as Cu and Ag. Assuming that each Au atom donates one conduction electron, calculate the drift mobility of the electrons in gold at 20 C. What is the mean free path of 6 1 the conduction electrons if their mean speed is 1.4 10 ms , 0 = 22.8 nm, 0 = 1/251 K1 and the density of Au is 19300 kg m3? [33.9 nm]

4. Electron drift mobility in tin (Sn) is 3.9 cm 2V1s1. The room temperature (20 C) resistivity of Sn is about 110 nm. The atomic mass Mat and density of Sn are 118.69 gmol 1 and 7.30 gcm3, respectively. How many free electrons are donated by each Sn atom in the crystal? [3.94]

Fermi Level 5. The Fermi energy of electrons in copper at room temperature (20 C) is 7.0 eV. The electron drift mobility in copper, from Hall effect measurements, is 33 cm 2 V1 s1. (a) What is the speed vF of conduction electrons with energies around EF in copper? By how many times is this larger than the average thermal speed vthermal of electrons, if they behaved like an ideal gas (Maxwell-Boltzmann statistics)? Why is vF much larger than vthermal? [1.57106 ms1; 1.15105 ms1; 13.7] (b) What is the de Broglie wavelength of these electrons? Will the electrons get diffracted by the lattice planes in copper, given that interplanar separation in Cu = 2.09 ? (Diffraction of waves occurs when 2dsin = , which is the Bragg condition. Find the relationship between and d that results in sin > 1 and hence no diffraction.) [4.631010 m; no] (c) Calculate the mean free path of electrons at EF and comment. [2.95108 m]

6. Solve the following: (a) Given that the Fermi energy for Cu is 7.0 eV at absolute zero, calculate the EF at 300K. What is the percentage change in EF and what is your conclusion? [6.999921 eV; 0.00129%]

Deepak Kumar

EEN2056 Physical Electronics

Trimester 2 2012/13

(b) Given the Fermi energy for Cu at absolute zero, calculate the average energy and mean speed per conduction electron at absolute zero and 300K, and comment. [4.2 eV, 1215446 ms 1; 4.200236 eV, 1215480 ms1]

7. Electron drift mobility in indium (In) has been measured to be 6 cm 2 V1s1. The room temperature (27 C) resistivity of In is 8.3710 8 m, and its atomic mass and density are 114.82 1 amu or gmol and 7.31 gcm3, respectively. (a) Based on the resistivity value, determine how many free electrons are donated by each In atom in the crystal. How does this compare with the position of In in the Periodic Table (Group IIIB)? [1.2431029 m3] (b) If the mean speed of conduction electrons in In is 1.74 108 cms 1, what is the mean free path? [5.94nm] (c) Calculate the thermal conductivity of In. How does this compare with the experimental value of 81.6 Wm1 K1? [85.4Wm1K1]

Deepak Kumar