Introduction to the Electronic Properties of Materials

David C. Jiles

• Publisher: CRC Press
• Year: 2017
• Print ISBN: 9780748760428
• eBook ISBN: 9781351989886
• Topic: Technology & Engineering
• Subtopic: Electrical Engineering & Telecommunications
• Index: Technology & Engineering

Electronic materials provide the basis for many high tech industries that have changed rapidly in recent years. In this fully revised and updated second edition, the author discusses the range of available materials and their technological applications. Introduction to the Electronic Properties of Materials, 2nd Edition presents the principles of the behavior of electrons in materials and develops a basic understanding with minimal technical detail. Broadly based, it touches on all of the key issues in the field and offers a multidisciplinary approach spanning physics, electrical engineering, and materials science. It provides an understanding of the behavior of electrons within materials, how electrons determine the magnetic thermal, optical and electrical properties of materials, and how electronic properties are controlled for use in technological applications. Although some mathematics is essential in this area, the mathematics that is used is easy to follow and kept to an appropriate level for the reader. An excellent introductory text for undergraduate students, this book is a broad introduction to the topic and provides a careful balance of information that will be appropriate for physicists, materials scientists, and electrical engineers.

Part One

Fundamentals of electrons in materials

1 Properties of a material continuum

Objective

The objective of this chapter is simply to remind ourselves of the macroscopic properties of materials and to point out that in uses of electronic materials we are mostly interested in these bulk properties, which are the ones that we usually measure. In order to measure these properties it is necessary that we also give exact definitions of the various quantities. The microscopic properties are of interest because they help us to explain the variation of the macroscopic properties with external conditions, including any interrelationships which exist between the macroscopic properties. Once we have achieved an understanding of the relationship between macroscopic properties and the microscopic structure of a material it becomes possible to control the structure in order to produce materials with specific desired properties.

1.1 Relationships between macroscopic properties of materials

How do the electrical and thermal properties of a material relate to its optical properties?

On the everyday scale our means of interacting with a material generally rely on its macroscopic properties, and these, as a rule, are based on the assumption that the material is a classical continuum. For example, it is well known that, generally, materials with highly reflecting surfaces are both good electrical and thermal conductors, and conversely materials with dull surfaces are not. Furthermore, highly reflecting materials, which are usually metals, generally have similar mechanical properties such as high ductility. These observations are so familiar from our everyday experience that they do not even give us pause for thought, but we should ask why there is a correlation between these apparently unrelated properties of materials. However, the macroscopic continuum model of materials gives no içdication what the underlying common mechanism might be.

The unexplained relationships between the macroscopic properties of materials form the starting point for our investigation of the electronic properties of materials. It seems that there must be some common underlying mechanism that is responsible for all three properties, optical, electrical and thermal, and that this causes the close relationship between them. In fact the correlation between the behaviour of the various properties of the materials can not be explained without some understanding of the structure of the materials and this involves the development of microscopic theories of the atomic and electronic structure inside the materials. The relationship between the structure of matter and its physical properties has been treated in detail using only classical physics to describe the materials in the excellent work of Landau et al. [1].

We will begin with some simple definitions of macroscopic properties and then consider some of the well-known macroscopic laws obeyed by materials. Our goal will then be to provide a conceptual framework for understanding these properties and relationships.

1.1.1 Measurable properties of materials

How do we characterize materials in terms of measurable quantities?

In order to measure the properties of a material we do not need to know anything about its internal structure. The properties of interest depend, of course, on the application under consideration, but broadly we are usually interested in one or more of the following categories: mechanical, elec...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Title Page
• Copy Page
• Content
• Preface to the first edition
• Preface to the second edition
• Glossary of symbols
• Si units, symbols and dimensions
• Values of selected physical constants
• Foreword for the student
• Part One: Fundamentals of electrons in materials
• Part Two Properties of Materials
• Part Three: Applications of electronic materials
• Solutions
• Subject index
• Author index