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Statistical mechanics of band states and impurity states in semiconductors

Almbladh, Carl-Olof LU and Rees, G J (1981) In Journal of Physics C: Solid State Physics 14(31). p.4575-4601
Abstract
Thermodynamic analogies have previously been invoked to interpret the temperature- and pressure-dependent electronic levels in a semiconductor as standard Gibbs free energies. In this paper it is shown by means of statistical mechanical arguments using the pressure ensemble that standard Gibbs free energies are the quantities determining equilibrium occupations of electronic levels and hence are the thermodynamic quantities that enter detailed balance relationships. Optical band gaps are identified with the 'nophonon line' gap for a transition in which the occupation numbers for the phonons and remaining electrons are unchanged. An exact expression for no phonon optical transition energies is given. It is shown rigorously that the optical... (More)
Thermodynamic analogies have previously been invoked to interpret the temperature- and pressure-dependent electronic levels in a semiconductor as standard Gibbs free energies. In this paper it is shown by means of statistical mechanical arguments using the pressure ensemble that standard Gibbs free energies are the quantities determining equilibrium occupations of electronic levels and hence are the thermodynamic quantities that enter detailed balance relationships. Optical band gaps are identified with the 'nophonon line' gap for a transition in which the occupation numbers for the phonons and remaining electrons are unchanged. An exact expression for no phonon optical transition energies is given. It is shown rigorously that the optical no-phonon-line energy is identical to the corresponding free-energy change for any transition between band states and also for transitions involving localised states provided: (i) the effects of electronic degeneracy changes are excluded from the free energy definition; (ii) the localised state is not associated with a local lattice mode. (Less)
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author
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Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
Journal of Physics C: Solid State Physics
volume
14
issue
31
pages
4575 - 4601
publisher
IOP Publishing
external identifiers
  • scopus:3142728376
ISSN
0022-3719
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
f12a5eab-b00a-48b1-ae5c-ae8561b0f71b (old id 8772569)
date added to LUP
2016-04-04 14:40:01
date last changed
2021-03-22 20:38:50
@article{f12a5eab-b00a-48b1-ae5c-ae8561b0f71b,
  abstract     = {{Thermodynamic analogies have previously been invoked to interpret the temperature- and pressure-dependent electronic levels in a semiconductor as standard Gibbs free energies. In this paper it is shown by means of statistical mechanical arguments using the pressure ensemble that standard Gibbs free energies are the quantities determining equilibrium occupations of electronic levels and hence are the thermodynamic quantities that enter detailed balance relationships. Optical band gaps are identified with the 'nophonon line' gap for a transition in which the occupation numbers for the phonons and remaining electrons are unchanged. An exact expression for no phonon optical transition energies is given. It is shown rigorously that the optical no-phonon-line energy is identical to the corresponding free-energy change for any transition between band states and also for transitions involving localised states provided: (i) the effects of electronic degeneracy changes are excluded from the free energy definition; (ii) the localised state is not associated with a local lattice mode.}},
  author       = {{Almbladh, Carl-Olof and Rees, G J}},
  issn         = {{0022-3719}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{31}},
  pages        = {{4575--4601}},
  publisher    = {{IOP Publishing}},
  series       = {{Journal of Physics C: Solid State Physics}},
  title        = {{Statistical mechanics of band states and impurity states in semiconductors}},
  volume       = {{14}},
  year         = {{1981}},
}