Electrical resistance, metals semiconductors

A frequently used technique to study point-defect creation is electrical conductivity measurement, because of its simplicity and great sensitivity. Indeed, in metallic materials, point defects are scattering centers for electrons they increase the electrical resistivity. In semiconductors, they introduce localized levels in the... 

Temperature The level of the temperature measurement (4 K, 20 K, 77 K, or higher) is the first issue to be considered. The second issue is the range needed (e.g., a few degrees around 90 K or 1 to 400 K). If the temperature level is that of air separation or liquefact-ing of natural gas (LNG), then the favorite choice is the platinum resistance thermometer (PRT). Platinum, as with all pure metals, has an electrical resistance that goes to zero as the absolute temperature decreases to zero. Accordingly, the lower useful limit of platinum is about 20 K, or liquid hydrogen temperatures. Below 20 K, semiconductor thermometers (germanium-, carbon-, or silicon-based) are preferred. Semiconductors have just the opposite resistance-temperature dependence of metals—their resistance increases as the temperature is lowered, as fewer valence electrons can be promoted into the conduction band at lower temperatures. Thus, semiconductors are usually chosen for temperatures from about 1 to 20 K. 

Instruments based on the contact principle can further be divided into two classes mechanical thermometers and electrical thermometers. Mechanical thermometers are based on the thermal expansion of a gas, a liquid, or a solid material. They are simple, robust, and do not normally require power to operate. Electrical resistance thermometers utilize the connection between the electrical resistance and the sensor temperature. Thermocouples are based on the phenomenon, where a temperature-dependent voltage is created in a circuit of two different metals. Semiconductor thermometers have a diode or transistor probe, or a more advanced integrated circuit, where the voltage of the semiconductor junctions is temperature dependent. All electrical meters are easy to incorporate with modern data acquisition systems. A summary of contact thermometer properties is shown in Table 12.3. 

The band edges are flattened when the anode is illuminated, the Fermi level rises, and the electrode potential shifts in the negative direction. As a result, a potential difference which amounts to about 0.6 to 0.8 V develops between the semiconductor and metal electrode. When the external circuit is closed over some load R, the electrons produced by illumination in the conduction band of the semiconductor electrode will flow through the external circuit to the metal electrode, where they are consumed in the cathodic reaction. Holes from the valence band of the semiconductor electrode at the same time are directly absorbed by the anodic reaction. Therefore, a steady electrical current arises in the system, and the energy of this current can be utilized in the external circuit. In such devices, the solar-to-electrical energy conversion efficiency is as high as 5 to 10%. Unfortunately, their operating life is restricted by the low corrosion resistance of semiconductor electrodes. 

The resistance thermometry is based on the temperature dependence of the electric resistance of metals, semiconductors and other resistive materials. This is the most diffused type of low-temperature thermometry sensors are usually commercial low-cost components. At very low temperatures, however, several drawbacks take place such as the low thermal conductivity in the bulk of the resistance and at the contact surface, the heating due to RF pick up and overheating (see Section 9.6.3)... 

The Schottky-Mott theory predicts a current / = (4 7t e m kB2/h3) T2 exp (—e A/kB 7) exp (e n V/kB T)— 1], where e is the electronic charge, m is the effective mass of the carrier, kB is Boltzmann s constant, T is the absolute temperature, n is a filling factor, A is the Schottky barrier height (see Fig. 1), and V is the applied voltage [31]. In Schottky-Mott theory, A should be the difference between the Fermi level of the metal and the conduction band minimum (for an n-type semiconductor-to-metal interface) or the valence band maximum (for a p-type semiconductor-metal interface) [32, 33]. Certain experimentally observed variations of A were for decades ascribed to pinning of states, but can now be attributed to local inhomogeneities of the interface, so the Schottky-Mott theory is secure. The opposite of a Schottky barrier is an ohmic contact, where there is only an added electrical resistance at the junction, typically between two metals. 

In the sense of electric conductivity, semiconductors are close to conductors but have very few free electrons. When electric resistance of metals increases with temperature, the semiconductor resistance decreases with temperature. Some of the electrons that are not free at normal temperature... 

Figure 6,23 Electrical resistivity of NiS2 (Se showing semiconductor-metal transition. (After Bouchard et al, 1973.)...

Materials can be classified as conductors, semiconductors or insulators. Conductors typically have resistivity in the range 10 2-103 xQ cm, semiconductors approximately 106-10n iQ cm, and insulators about 1013-1018 (xQ cm. Table 1.5 compares the electrical resistivity of the elements and compounds at room temperature. Although the carbides and nitrides have somewhat higher resistivity than do the pure metals, they still have resistivity in the regime of metallic conductors. In comparison the ceramic materials have much higher values, and are typically insulators. 

There is no boundary between semiconductors and insulators the distinction has been made only for practical reasons and a arbitrary boundary has been chosen at a certain value of the electrical resistance. We may expect that also metal ions in so-called insulators can be transferred into ions of other valency or into atoms. Such reactions may proceed more easily at the surface than in the interior of the crystal and we have to be aware of this possibility in chemisorption processes. 

The minus sign of the Seebeck coefficient indicates an n-type semiconductor as shown in Figure 18.6. The absolute values increase except for the specimen (M = Cu, X = 0.1), where the metallic Cu is supposed to exist in the crystal. The Seebeck coefficient in the specimen of Cu (0.01 mol%) increased against temperature although the electrical resistivity did not change much, implying a good characteristic for the TE material. 

The thermisters (TMs) are semiconductor device with a high resistance dependence on temperature. They may be calibrated as a thermometer. The semiconductor sensor exhibits a large change in resistance that is proportional to a small change in temperature. Normally TMs have negative thermal coefficients. Like RTDs, they operate on the principle that the electrical resistance of a conductive metal is driven by changes in temperatures. Variations in the conductor s electrical resistance are thus interpreted and quantified, as changes in temperature occur. 

---