A STUDY INTO ENERGY GAP IN SUPERCONDUCTORS (Physics Project Topics) ENERGY GAP

In solid state physics and related applied field, an “ENERGY GAP” also known as “BAND GAP” is the energy ranged in a solid where no electron state exist for insulators and semiconductors the band gap or energy gap, generally refers to the energy difference between the top of the valence band and the bottom of the conduction band, but in superconductors, the energy gap is the energy required to break up a pair of electron usually referred to as cooper pairs or simply put, the energy required to disrupt the state. Energy gap depend on temperature because of ‘thermal expansion’. (Emslay, J ; 1991). Energy gap also depend on pressure. Energy gap can further be divided into two groups, depending on the band structure, they are

1. Direct energy gap

2. Indirect energy gap Figure:

3.2 Energy Vs momentum for an indirect energy gap showing that an electron cannot shift from the lowest potential in the conduction to the highest potential in the valence band without a change in momentum. An indirect band gap means that the minimum energy in the conduction band is shifted by a vector relative to the valence band. The vector difference represents a difference in momentum. Recombination occurs with the mediation of a third body, such as a “phonon” or a crystallographic defect, which allows for conservation of momentum. This recombination will often release the band gap energy as phonons; instead of photons, and thus do not emit light.

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