Effective mass (solid-state physics)

About: Effective mass (solid-state physics) is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 12539 publications have been published within this topic receiving 295485 citations.

Mobility anisotropy in monolayer black phosphorus due to scattering by charged impurities

Abstract: We explore the charged-impurity-scattering-limited mobility of electrons and holes in monolayer black phosphorus (BP), a highly anisotropic material. Taking full account of the anisotropic electronic structure in effective mass approximation, the zero-temperature momentum relaxation time and the charge carrier mobility are calculated based on the Boltzmann transport equation. For carrier densities accessible in experiments, we obtain anisotropy ratios of 3--4. These results are somewhat larger than mobility anisotropy ratios determined experimentally for multilayer BP samples, but due to the complex dependence of the scattering rates on the anisotropy, they are strikingly smaller than the effective mass ratios.

Muonium as a model for interstitial hydrogen in the semiconducting and semimetallic elements

Abstract: Although the interstitial hydrogen atom would seem to be one of the simplest defect centres in any lattice, its solid state chemistry is in fact unknown in many materials, not least amongst the elements. In semiconductors, the realization that hydrogen can profoundly influence electronic properties even as a trace impurity has prompted its study by all available means-but still only in the functionally important or potentially important materials-for the elements, Si, Ge and diamond. Even here, it was not studies of hydrogen itself but of its pseudo-isotope, muonium, that first provided the much needed microscopic pictures of crystallographic site and local electronic structure-now comprehensively confirmed by ab initio computation and such data as exists for monatomic, interstitial hydrogen centres in Si. Muonium can be formed in a variety of neutral paramagnetic states when positive muons are implanted into non-metals. The simple trapped atom is commonly only metastable. It coexists with or reacts to give defect centres with the unpaired electron in somewhat more extended orbitals. Indications of complete delocalization into effective mass states are discussed for B, α-Sn, Bi and even Ge, but otherwise all the muonium centres seen in the elemental semiconductors are deep and relatively compact. These are revealed, distinguished and characterized by μSR spectroscopy-muon spin rotation and resonance informing on sites and spin-density distributions, muon spin relaxation on motional dynamics and charge-state transitions. This Report documents the progress of μSR studies for all the semiconductors and semimetals of the p-block elements, Groups III-VI of the Periodic Table. The striking spectra and originally unanticipated results for Group IV are for the most part well known but deserve summarizing and updating; the sheer diversity of muonium states found is still remarkable, especially in carbon allotropes. The interplay of crystallographic site and charge state in Si and Ge at high temperatures, or under illumination, reflects the capture and loss of charge carriers that should model the electrical activity of monatomic hydrogen but still challenges theoretical descriptions. Spin-flip scattering of conduction electrons by the paramagnetic centres is revealed in heavily doped n-type material, as well as some modification of the local electronic structures. The corresponding spectroscopy for the solid elements of Groups III, V and VI is rather less well known and is reviewed here for the first time; a good deal of previously unpublished data is also included. Theoretical expectations and computational modelling are sparse, here. Recent results for B suggest a relatively shallow centre with molecular character; P and As show deeper quasi-atomic states, but still with substantial overlap of spin density onto surrounding host atoms. Particular attention is paid to the chalcogens. Muonium centres in Te show charge-state transitions already around room temperature; the identification of those in S and Se has been complicated by unusual spin dynamics of a different character, here attributed to spin-orbit coupling and interstitial reorientation. In the metals and semimetals, muonium is not formed as a paramagnetic centre. Here the implanted muons mimic interstital protons and interest shifts to a variety of other topics, including aspects of charge screening (α-Sn, Sb, Bi), site preference and quantum mobility (Al, β-Sn, Pb). The post-transition metals receive only a brief mention, by way of contrast with the nonmetals. Systematic studies of local susceptibility via measurements of muon Knight shifts extends in favourable cases to revealing the elusive high-field Condon domains (Al, Sn, Pb, Bi). Some new information is available on the superconducting phases. Appendices include a derivation of the spin Hamiltonian for paramagnetic muonium centres or molecular radicals having varying admixtures of orbital angular momentum, including the extreme case of orbital degeneracy, and examine the consequences of significant spin-orbit coupling for μSR spectroscopy and muon spin relaxation. This is the framework for the tentative assignments made here for the muonium defect centres formed in sulphur and selenium, namely diatomic species resembling the chalcogen monohydrides. Equally, it provides guidelines for eventual solid-state detection of OMu-the elusive muoniated hydroxyl radical.

Determination of the bulk band structure of Ag in Ag/Cu(111) quantum-well systems

Abstract: Ag is grown epitaxially on Cu(111) to form quantum wells. The resulting quantum-well states and resonances, observed with angle-resolved photoemission, exhibit shifts in energy for varying emission directions and for changing Ag-film thicknesses. The results are utilized in a determination of the Ag bulk sp-band dispersion relation near the L point in the Brillouin zone. Effective masses and the Fermi surface near the L point are deduced. The Fermi surface agrees well with that obtained earlier from de Haas--van Alphen measurements.

First-principles study of electron and hole mobilities of Si and GaAs

Abstract: With first-principles calculated electron-phonon coupling matrix elements, the phonon-limited electron and hole mobilities of Si and GaAs are studied using the Boltzmann transport equation. The calculated mobilities agree well with the experimental measurements. For electrons in GaAs, the calculated mobility is very sensitive to the band structure characterized by the effective mass and the energy gap between $\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Gamma}}$ and L valleys, which clarifies the discrepancies between recent literature findings [J.-J. Zhou and M. Bernardi, Phys. Rev. B 94, 201201(R) (2016); T.-H. Liu et al., Phys. Rev. B 95, 075206 (2017)]. Unlike electrons in GaAs, where the longitudinal optical phonon dominates the scattering, the other phonon branches have a comparable influence on the mobility of holes in GaAs. In Si and GaAs, the spin-orbit coupling interaction has a significant effect on the valence bands and, further, on the hole mobilities, without which the calculated mobility is underestimated, especially at relatively low temperatures, while it has almost no effect on the electrons.

Global band structure and near-band edge states

Abstract: The global band structure from ab-initio calculations using DFT-LDA concepts is presented and discussed for 2H, 3C, 4H, 6H, and 15R SiC in view of the different stacking sequences and point lattices of these polytypes. Details of the conduction and valence band structure close to the band edges are described by using {\bf k·p} models and thermal density-of-states effective masses are calculated.