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Semiconductor Physics Problem Set 2

This document discusses two key topics in semiconductor physics: 1. The properties of a free electron gas in two dimensions, including the relation between electron density (n) and wave vector (k), the density of energy levels (g(E)), and the relationship between chemical potential (μ) and Fermi energy (Ef) at different temperatures. 2. The classical limit of Fermi-Dirac statistics, where the Fermi-Dirac distribution approximates the Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution. This requires the exponential term to be much greater than 1 for all positive energies. The document derives conditions for when this classical approximation holds based on the thermal de Broglie wavelength.

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18 views2 pages

Semiconductor Physics Problem Set 2

This document discusses two key topics in semiconductor physics: 1. The properties of a free electron gas in two dimensions, including the relation between electron density (n) and wave vector (k), the density of energy levels (g(E)), and the relationship between chemical potential (μ) and Fermi energy (Ef) at different temperatures. 2. The classical limit of Fermi-Dirac statistics, where the Fermi-Dirac distribution approximates the Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution. This requires the exponential term to be much greater than 1 for all positive energies. The document derives conditions for when this classical approximation holds based on the thermal de Broglie wavelength.

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Aniket
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© All Rights Reserved
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FUNDAMENTALS OF SEMICONDUCTOR PHYSICS PROBLEM SET 2

1. The Free and Independent Electron Gas in Two Dimensions.


a. What is the relation between 𝑛 and 𝑘! in two dimensions?
b. What is the relation between 𝑘! and 𝑟" in two dimensions?
c. Prove that in two dimensions the free electron density of levels 𝑔(𝐸) is a
constant independent of 𝐸 for 𝐸 > 0 , and 0 for 𝐸 < 0 . What is the constant?
d. Show that because 𝑔(𝐸) is constant, every term in the Sommerfeld expansion
for 𝑛 vanishes except the 𝑇 = 0 term. Deduce that 𝜇 = 𝐸! at any temperature.
#
e. Using 𝑛 = ∫$# 𝑑𝐸 𝑔(𝐸)𝑓(𝐸), deduce that when 𝑔(𝐸) is as in (c), then
&
$' (
𝜇 + 𝑘% 𝑇 ln 51 + 𝑒 ! 8 = 𝐸!
f. Estimate from the equation found in part (e) the amount by which 𝜇 differs from
𝐸! . Comment on the numerical significance of this “failure” of the Sommerfeld
expansion, and on the mathematical reason for the “failure”.

2. The Classical Limit of Fermi-Dirac Statistics. The Fermi-Dirac distribution reduces to the
)
Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution, provided that the Fermi function, 𝑓(𝐸) = * (#$%)/()* +) ,
is much less than unity for every positive 𝐸, for in that case we must have
-$&
$
𝑓(𝐸) ≈ 𝑒 ') (
The necessary and sufficient condition for the approximation to 𝑓(𝐸) to hold for all
positive 𝐸 is
&
$
𝑒 '! ( ≫ 1
a. Assuming that 𝑒 $&/'! ( ≫ 1, show that
𝑟" = 𝑒 $&⁄/'! ( 3)// 𝜋 )⁄1 ℏ(2𝑚𝑘2 𝑇)$)/3
b. In conjunction with 𝑒 $&/'! ( ≫ 1, this requires that
)/3
ℏ3
𝑟" ≫ @ A
2𝑚𝑘% 𝑇
This can also be taken as the condition for classical statistics. What is the
significance of the length 𝑟" must exceed? (Hint: think about the DeBroglie
wavelength.)
c. Show that the condition on 𝑟" leads to the numerical condition
)/3
𝑟" 105 K
≫@ A
𝑎4 𝑇

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