HW 1 Due Mar 21, 2017

1. Debye Theory

In the lecture, we derived the low temperature Debye heat capacity assuming that the
longitudinal and transverse sound velocities are the same and also that the sound velocity
is independent of the direction that the sound wave is propagating.
(a) Suppose the transverse velocity is vt and the longitudinal velocity is vl . How does this
change the Debye result? State any assumptions you make.
(b) Instead suppose the velocity is anisotropic. For example, suppose in the x, y and z direc-
tion, the sound velocity is vx , vy and vz respectively. How might this change the Debye
result?

2. Diatomic Einstein Solid

Imagine we have two particles in three dimensions, connected to each other with a string,
both in the bottom of a harmonic well.
p21 p2 k k K
H= + 2 + x21 + x22 + (x1 x2 )2 (1)
2m1 2m2 2 2 2
where k is the spring constant holding both particles in the bottom of the well, and K is
the spring constant holding the two particles. Assume that the two particles are different
atoms.
(a) Calculate the classical partition function and show that the heat capacity is again 3kB
per particle
(b) Calculate the quantum partition function and find an expression for the heat capacity.
Sketch the heat capacity as a function of temperature if K  k.
(c) How does the result change if the atoms are indistinguishable?

3. Drude theory of transport in metals

(a) Estimate the magnitude of the Hall voltage for a speciman of sodium in the form of a rod
of rectangular cross-section 5mm by 5mm carrying a current of 1A down its long axis in
a magnetic field of 1T perpendicular to the long axis. The density of sodium atoms is
roughly 1gram/cm3 and sodium has atomic mass of roughly 23. You may assume that
there is one free electron persodium atom (sodium has valence 1)
(b) What practical difficulties would there be in measuring the Hall voltage and resistivity
of such a specimen?
(c) What properties of metals does Drude theory not explain well?
(d) Consider now an applied AC field E eit which induces an AC current j eit . Modify
the Drude calculation (in the presence of a magnetic field) to obtain an expression for
the complex AC conductivity matrix (). For simplicity in this case you may assume
that the metal is very clean, meaning that , and you may assume that E B.
You might again find it convenient to assume B parallel to the z axis.
HW 1 Due Mar 21, 2017

(e) At what frequency is there a divergence in the conductivity? What does this divergence
meatn? (When is finite, the divergence is cut off.
(f) Explain how could one use this divergence (known as the cyclotron resonance) to measure
the mass of the electron. (In fact, in real metals, the measured mass of the electron is
generally not equal to the well known value me = 9.105 1031 kg.