Electron and Lattice Transport Phenomena in an Antimony Crystal at Liquid-He4Temperatures

Abstract

In a very pure single crystal of antimony, a complete set of kinetic transport coefficients of the galvanomagnetic and thermomagnetic effects was determined at each of the temperatures 1.6, 2.1, 3.0, and 4.0\ifmmode^\circ\else\textdegree\fi{}K in fields up to 18 kG. Standard measuring techniques were employed. An electron-phonon normal process was found to dominate the scattering for both electronic and lattice conduction. The usual theories assuming a time of relaxation were applied to the gross coefficients, while the oscillations found at the higher fields were analyzed in terms of the several existing theories which take account of Landau quantization. Both the lattice thermal and ideal electrical conductivities appeared to be anomalous in magnitude and temperature dependence, but their ratio was very satisfactorily fitted to the relation expected for an $N$ process. A standard two-band model assuming a time of relaxation gave remarkably good agreement with data for the field dependence of the gross effects. The magnitude and large temperature dependence of the Nernst-Ettinghausen coefficient were satisfactorily explained by a simple theory of phonon drag. Since the lattice conductivity was limited by electron scattering, the oscillations in the lattice thermal resistivity were quantitatively shown to be a result of an oscillation in the density of scattering centers, as a consequence of Landau quantization.