Suggested mechanism for temperature dependence of orbitally averaged Fermi surface scattering rates in Cd

Abstract

Electron-phonon scattering leads naturally to cubic and exponential exp(- theta /T) temperature dependences of quasiparticle scattering rates at low temperatures. The authors describe a mechanism by which a quadratic dependence can arise in orbital averages without necessarily appearing in point rates anywhere on the orbit. The estimated magnitude agrees with recent radio-frequency size effect data in Cd. They predict that cubic or exponential behaviour should be recovered at temperatures below about 1K.