Solid-state physics: Facts, Discussion Forum, and Encyclopedia Article

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Solid-state physics

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	Solid-state physics
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	Topics Solid-state physics Topic Home Solid-state physics, the largest branch of condensed matter physicsCondensed matter physics Condensed matter physics is the field of physics that deals with the macroscopic physical properties of matter.... , is the study of rigid matterMatter In physics, matter is commonly defined as the substance of which physical objects are composed, not counting the contributio... , or solidSolid A solid object is in the phase of matter characterized by resistance to deformation and changes of volume.... s. The bulk of solid-state physics theory and research is focused on crystalCrystal In chemistry and mineralogy, a crystal is a solid in which the constituent atoms, molecules, or ions are packed in a regular... s, largely because the periodicityPeriodicity Summary Periodicity is the quality of occurring at regular intervals and can occur in different contexts:... of atomFacts About Atom In chemistry and physics, an atom is the smallest possible particle of a chemical element that retains its chemical propert... s in a crystal — its defining characteristic —facilitates mathematical modeling, and also because crystalline materials often have electricalElectrical engineering Electrical engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the study and application of electricity, e... , magneticMagnetism In physics, magnetism is one of the phenomena by which materials exert an attractive or repulsive force on other materials.... , opticalOptics Optics is a branch of physics that describes the behavior and properties of light and the interaction of light with matter.... , or mechanicalMechanical engineering Overview Mechanical engineering is a professional engineering discipline that involves the application of principles of physics for a... properties that can be exploited for engineeringEngineering Engineering is the application of scientific and mathematical principles to develop economical solutions to technical proble... purposes. The framework of most solid-state physics theory is the SchrödingerSchrödinger equation In physics, the Schrdinger equation, proposed by the Austrian physicist Erwin Schrdinger in 1925, describes the space- and t... (wave) formulation of non-relativistic quantum mechanicsFacts About Quantum mechanics Quantum mechanics is a first quantized quantum theory that supersedes classical mechanics at the atomic and subatomic levels... . Bloch's theoremBloch's theorem * For the theorem named after Felix Bloch on wave functions of a particle in a periodic potential, see Bloch wave.... , which characterizes the wavefunctionWavefunction This article discusses the concept of a wavefunction as it relates to quantum mechanics.... s of electronFacts About Electron The electron is a fundamental subatomic particle that carries an electric charge.... s in a periodic potentialPotential In physics, a potential may refer to the scalar potential or to the vector potential.... , is an important starting point for much analysis. Since Bloch's theorem applies only to periodic potentials, and since unceasing random movements of atoms in a crystal disrupt periodicity, this use of Bloch's theorem is only an approximation, but it has proven to be a tremendously valuable approximation, without which most solid-state physics analysis would be intractable. Deviations from periodicity are treated by quantum mechanical perturbation theoryPerturbation theory (quantum mechanics) In quantum mechanics, perturbation theory is a set of approximation schemes directly related to mathematical perturbation f... . Topics Amorphous solidAmorphous solid An amorphous solid is a solid in which there is no long-range order of the positions of the atoms.... Crystal structureCrystal structure Overview In mineralogy and crystallography, a crystal structure is a unique arrangement of atoms in a crystal.... defectsCrystallographic defect Crystalline solids have a very regular atomic structure: that is, the local positions of atoms with respect to each other are repe... quasicrystalQuasicrystal Quasicrystals are a peculiar form of solid in which the atoms are arranged in a seemingly regular, yet non-repeating structu... Free electron modelFree electron model In physics, the free electron model is a simple model for the behaviour of electrons in a crystal structure of a metallic so... reciprocal latticeReciprocal lattice In crystallography, the reciprocal lattice of a Bravais lattice is the set of all vectors K such that... X-ray crystallographyX-ray crystallography Overview X-ray crystallography is a technique in crystallography in which the pattern produced by the diffraction of X-rays through t... neutron diffractionNeutron diffraction Neutron diffraction is a crystallographic method for the determination of the atomic structure of a material.... dynamical theory of diffractionDynamical theory of diffraction The dynamical theory of diffraction describes the interaction of wave fields with a regular lattice.... Dielectric properties ferroelectricityFerroelectricity In physics, the ferroelectric effect is an electrical phenomenon whereby certain ionic crystals and piezoelectric polymers m... Refractive indexRefractive index The refractive index of a material is the factor by which the phase velocity of electromagnetic radiation is slowed in that... Double refraction polaronPolaron A slow moving electron in a dielectric crystal, interacting with lattice ions through long-range forces will permanently be surrou... Electronic structure band gapBand gap In solid state physics and related applied fields, the band gap is the energy difference between the top of the valence band... Bloch waveBloch wave Overview A Bloch wave or Bloch state, named after Felix Bloch, is the wavefunction of a particle placed in a periodic potential... s (electron waves in a lattice) conduction bandConduction band In semiconductors and insulators, the conduction band is the range of electron energy, higher than that of the valence band,... effective massEffective mass In solid state physics, a particle's effective mass is the mass it seems to carry in the semiclassical model of transpor... electron holeElectron hole In solid state physics, an electron hole is the absence of an electron from the otherwise full valence band.... Fermi gasFermi gas A Fermi gas, or Free electron gas, is a collection of non-interacting fermions.... Fermi energyFermi energy In physics and Fermi-Dirac statistics, the Fermi energy of a system of non-interacting fermions is the smallest possible inc... Fermi liquidFermi liquid A Fermi liquid is a generic term for a quantum mechanical liquid of fermions that arises under certain physical conditions&m... excitonExciton An exciton is a bound state of an electron and an imaginary particle called an electron hole in an insulator or semiconducto... plasmonFacts About Plasmon In physics, the plasmon is the quasiparticle resulting from the quantization of plasma oscillations.... valence bandValence band Overview In solids, the valence band is the highest range of electron energies where electrons are normally present at absolute zero.... Electronic transport Bloch oscillationsBloch oscillations Bloch oscillation is a phenomenon from solid state physics.... Drude modelDrude model The Drude model of electrical conduction was developed in the 1900s by Paul Drude to explain the transport properties of ele... electrical conductionElectrical conduction Electrical conduction is the movement of electrically charged particles through a transmission medium.... Hall effectHall effect Summary The Hall effect refers to the potential difference on opposite sides of a thin sheet of conducting or semiconducting materi... magnetoresistanceMagnetoresistance Magnetoresistance is the property of some materials to change the value of their electrical resistance when an external magn... superconductivitySuperconductivity Superconductivity is a phenomenon occurring in certain materials at extremely low temperatures , characterized by exactly ze... Magnetic properties magnetismMagnetism In physics, magnetism is one of the phenomena by which materials exert an attractive or repulsive force on other materials.... Mechanical properties crystal acoustics Debye modelDebye model Summary In thermodynamics and solid state physics, the Debye model is a method developed by Peter Debye in 1912 for estimating the p... of specific heat Einstein model of specific heat elasticityElasticity (physics) Elasticity is a branch of physics which studies the properties of elastic materials.... hardnessHardness In materials science, hardness is the characteristic of a solid material expressing its resistance to permanent deformation.... hyper sound Mössbauer effectMössbauer effect The Mssbauer effect, a physical phenomenon discovered by Rudolf Mssbauer in 1957, refers to the resonant and recoil-free emi... nanomechanicsNanomechanics Nanomechanics is a branch of nanoscience studying fundamental mechanical properties of physical systems at the nano... (nanoscale structures) phononFacts About Phonon In physics, a phonon is a quantized mode of vibration occurring in a rigid crystal lattice, such as the atomic lattice of a ... s (lattice vibrations) plastic deformation ultrasonic Optical properties Brillouin scatteringBrillouin scattering Brillouin scattering occurs when light in a medium interacts with density variations and changes its path.... crystal opticsCrystal optics Crystal optics is the branch of optics that describes the behaviour of light in anisotropic media, that is, media in whi... infrared absorption optical phononOptical phonon Overview Optical phonons are phonon polarization modes with a minimum frequency, regardless of wavelength, which occur in crystals with mor... Raman scatteringRaman scattering Summary Raman scattering or the Raman effect is the inelastic scattering of a photon which creates or annihilates an optical p... See also AlloyAlloy An alloy is a combination, either in solution or compound, of two or more elements, at least one of which is a metal, and wh... s InsulatorInsulator Summary Insulator may refer to:* Insulator ... MetalMetal In chemistry, a metal is an element that readily forms positive ions and has metallic bonds.... SemiconductorSemiconductor A semiconductor is a material with electrical conductivity that is intermediate between that of an insulator and a conducto... Semi-metal Spin glassSpin glass A spin glass is a disordered material exhibiting high magnetic frustration.... Surface scienceSurface science Surface science or surface chemistry is the study of physical and chemical phenomena that occur at the interface of tw...