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Debye Model of Heat Capacity Explained

The Debye model describes the heat capacity of a solid at constant volume, showing that at low temperatures (T ≪ ΘD), the heat capacity is proportional to T³, while at high temperatures (T ≫ ΘD), it approaches the classical Dulong-Petit Law value of 3NkB. The model uses integrals and approximations to derive these relationships based on the Debye temperature and phonon frequencies. Key results include the T-cubed law for low temperatures and the classical limit for high temperatures.

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67 views2 pages

Debye Model of Heat Capacity Explained

The Debye model describes the heat capacity of a solid at constant volume, showing that at low temperatures (T ≪ ΘD), the heat capacity is proportional to T³, while at high temperatures (T ≫ ΘD), it approaches the classical Dulong-Petit Law value of 3NkB. The model uses integrals and approximations to derive these relationships based on the Debye temperature and phonon frequencies. Key results include the T-cubed law for low temperatures and the classical limit for high temperatures.

Uploaded by

bodstar999
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

The Debye Model of Heat Capacity

The Debye model for the lattice heat capacity of a solid at constant volume is given by the
Θ /T

( )
T 3 x4 ex
D

ΘD ∫
expression: C V =9 N k B ¿ where N is the number of atoms, k B is the Boltzmann
0
¿¿
constant, and:
ℏ ωD
Θ D is the Debye temperature, defined by the expression Θ D= , where ω D is the Debye cut-
kB
off angular frequency.
ℏω
x is the dimensionless integration variable, defined as x= , where ω is the phonon angular
k BT
frequency.
(a) Show that in the low temperature limit (T ≪ ΘD ), the heat capacity is proportional to T 3.
(The T-cubed Law)
(b) Show that in the high temperature limit (T ≫ Θ D), the heat capacity approaches the classical
value 3 N k B . (The Dulong-Petit Law)

Solution
(a) Low Temperature Limit (T ≪ ΘD )
ΘD Θ
The low temperature limit implies that the ratio is very large: D → ∞.
T T
ΘD
1. Change of Integration Limit: Since the upper limit x max = is very large, the
T
integrand approaches zero rapidly. We can extend the upper limit of the definite integral
3 ∞

( )
4 x
T x e
to infinity without significant loss of accuracy: C V ≈ 9 N k B ∫
Θ D 0 ¿¿
¿

2. Evaluating the Integral: The definite integral is a known standard integral value:
∞ 4 x
x e
∫ ¿¿ ¿
0

3. Final Expression: Substituting the constant integral value back into the C V equation:

( )( ) ( ) ( )
4 4
T
3
4π
4
9⋅ 4 π N k B 3 12 π N k B 3
C V =9 N k B CV= T CV= T
ΘD 15 15 Θ3D 5 Θ3D
( )
4
12 π N k B
Since the term in the parentheses is a constant for a given solid, the result shows:
5 Θ 3D
3
CV ∝ T

(b) High Temperature Limit (T ≫ Θ D)


ΘD Θ
The high temperature limit implies that the ratio is very small: D →0 . Consequently, the
T T
Θ
integration variable x is small across the entire integration range (0 ≤ x ≤ D ≪ 1).
T
Small x Approximation: We use the Taylor series expansion for the exponential function for
small x : e x ≈ 1+ x
4 x 4 x
Substitute the approximation into the integrand x e : x e For x ≪ 1, the leading term is:
¿¿ ¿¿
4
x (1) 2
=x
x2
ΘD
Substitute the simplified integrand x 2 and the upper limit into the C V expression:
T

( )[ ] ( )[ ( ) ]
3 ΘD / T ΘD /T

( )∫
3 3
T 2 T x3 T
3
1 ΘD
C V ≈ 9 N kB x dx C V ≈ 9 N k B C V ≈ 9 N kB −0
ΘD 0
ΘD 3 0 ΘD 3 T

Simplifying the expression by cancelling the temperature and Debye temperature terms:

( )( )
3 3
1 T ΘD
C V ≈ 9 N kB ⋅ ⋅ C V ≈3 N k B
3 ΘD T

This result is the classical Dulong-Petit Law, which states that at high temperatures, the heat
capacity per atom is 3 k B.

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