Physical properties, conductors

These elements form two groups, often called the alkali (Group I) and alkaline earth (Group II) metals. Some of the physical properties usually associated with metals—hardness, high m.p. and b.p.—are noticeably lacking in these metals, but they all have a metallic appearance and are good electrical conductors. Table 6.1 gives some of the physical properties. 

The carbon black in semiconductive shields is composed of complex aggregates (clusters) that are grape-like stmctures of very small primary particles in the 10 to 70 nanometer size range (see Carbon, carbon black). The optimum concentration of carbon black is a compromise between conductivity and processibiUty and can vary from about 30 to 60 parts per hundred of polymer (phr) depending on the black. If the black concentration is higher than 60 phr for most blacks, the compound is no longer easily extmded into a thin continuous layer on the cable and its physical properties are sacrificed. Ionic contaminants in carbon black may produce tree channels in the insulation close to the conductor shield. 

The physical properties of bismuth, summarized ia Table 1, are characterized by a low melting poiat, a high density, and expansion on solidification. Thermochemical and thermodynamic data are summarized ia Table 2. The soHd metal floats on the Hquid metal as ice floating on water. GaUium and antimony are the only other metals that expand on solidification. Bismuth is the most diamagnetic of the metals, and it is a poor electrical conductor. The thermal conductivity of bismuth is lower than that of any other metal except mercury. 

Properties and Mature of Bonding. The metaUic carbides are interesting materials that combine the physical properties of ceramics (qv) with the electronic nature of metals. Thus they are hard and strong, but at the same time good conductors of heat and electricity. 

Many metal sulfides have important physical properties.They range from insulators, through semiconductors to metallic conductors of electricity, and some are even superconductors. 

Tin oxide, Sn02, has unusual physical properties. It is a good electrical conductor. It is highly transparent to the visible and highly reflective to the infrared spectrum. It is deposited extensively by CVD mostly for optical applications. Its characteristics and properties are summarized in Table 11.6. 

Basic physical properties of sulfur, selenium, and tellurium are indicated in Table 1.3. Downward the sulfur sub-group, the metallic character increases from sulfur to polonium, so that whereas there exist various non-metallic allotropic states of elementary sulfur, only one allotropic form of selenium is (semi)metallic, and the (semi)metallic form of tellurium is the most common for this element. Polonium is a typical metal. Physically, this trend is reflected in the electrical properties of the elements oxygen and sulfur are insulators, selenium and tellurium behave as semiconductors, and polonium is a typical metallic conductor. The temperature coefficient of resistivity for S, Se, and Te is negative, which is usually considered... 

Finally, the shape and self-assembly of these particles can also be controlled which gives rise to novel nanomaterials displaying interesting physical properties in the fields of semi-conductors, magnetism, or optics. 

Conductivity is a very important parameter for any conductor. It is intimately related to other physical properties of the conductor, such as thermal conductivity (in the case of metals) and viscosity (in the case of liquid solutions). The strength of the electric current I in conductors is measured in amperes, and depends on the conductor, on the electrostatic field strengtfi E in tfie conductor, and on the conductor s cross section S perpendicular to the direction of current flow. As a convenient parameter that is independent of conductor dimensions, the current density is used, which is the fraction of current associated with the unit area of the conductor s cross section i = I/S (units A/cnF). 

In recent years, the amount of research time devoted to materials chemistry has risen almost exponentially and sulfur-based radicals, such as the charge-transfer salts based upon TTF (tetrathiafulvalene), have played an important role in these developments. These TTF derivatives will not be discussed here but are dealt with elsewhere in this book. Instead we focus on recent developments in the area of group 15/16 free radicals. Up until the latter end of the last century, these radicals posed fundamental questions regarding the structure and bonding in main group chemistry. Now, in many cases, their thermodynamic and kinetic stability allows them to be used in the construction of molecular magnets and conductors. In this overview we will focus on the synthesis and characterisation of these radicals with a particular emphasis on their physical properties. 

We classify the elements to the left of this line, excluding the metalloids and hydrogen, as the metals. The metals have physical properties that we normally associate with metals in the everyday world—they are solids (with the exception of mercury), they have a metallic luster, and are good conductors of both electricity and heat. They are malleable (capable of being hammered into thin sheets) and ductile (capable of being drawn into thin wires). And as we will see later in this book, the metals tend to lose electrons in chemical reactions. 

Thermal conductivity is a physical property of the solid through which the heat is being transferred. It is a measure of the material s ability to conduct heat. Insulators have a low thermal conductivity and conductors have a high thermal conductivity. The rate of heat transfer has magnitude and direction. This is represented mathematically by the negative sign that appears in Fourier s law of heat conduction. 

The required degree of understanding of the physical properties of metal thin films used for interconnects on chips is illustrated by the following example. It was found that the performance of conductors on chips, A1 or Cu, depends on the structure of the conductor metal. For example, Vaidya and Sinha (10) reported that the measured median time to failure (MTF) of Al-0.5% Cu thin films is a function of three microstructural variables (attributes) median grain size, statistical variance (cr ) of the grain size distribution, and degree of [111] fiber texture in the film. 

Exists in two adotropic modifications. Crystalline sihcon is made up of grayish-black lustrous needle-hke crystals or octahedral platelets cubic structure Amorphous sdicon is a brown powder. Other physical properties are density 2.33g/cm3 at 25°C melts at 1,414°C high purity liquid silicon has density 2.533 g/cm at its melting point vaporizes at 3,265°C vapor pressure 0.76 torr at 2,067°C Mohs hardness 6.5. Brinell hardness 250 poor conductor of electricity dielectiric constant 13 critical temperature 4°C calculated critical pressure 530 atm magnetic susceptibility (containing 0.085%Fe) 0.13x10 insoluble in water dissolves in hydrofluoric acid or a mixture of hydrofluoric and nitric acids soluble in molten alkalies. 

If, in a compound, gaps in either the anion or the cation lattice are formed, the effect will be an increase in the entropy. In spite of the fact that the energy of NaCl will be greatly increased if gaps in the lattice are formed, at high temperature there will be a (small) number of holes, both in the Na+ and the Cl positions. The deficiencies of the lattice have a very important influence on the physical properties. If there are gaps in the lattice, ions of both kinds can easily move into adjacent positions, with the result that the solid compound becomes an electrolytic conductor this is what occurs in NaCl near the melting point. 

Physical properties good conductors of electricity malleable ductile lustrous typically solid... 

Similarities in the bonding characteristics amongst the MM N2 (M = Li, Fe, Mn M = Mo, W) nitrides are further supported by the observed physical properties. Both FeWN2 and (Fe0,8Moo 2)MoN216 are temperature independent metallic conductors and, in addition, are antiferromagnets... 

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