| Course Description |
Condensed matter physics involve fundamental studies of the properties of crystalline and non crystalline materials at the microscopic level. The overall aims are: to relate these studies to the applications of materials in microelectronic, optoelectronic, data storage and other industries, and to provide a sound foundation for research and innovation in the field of condensed matter.
After completing this module, the students should be able to:
•Analyse X-ray diffraction patterns and identify crystal structures of solids
•Sketch the reciprocal lattices of various crystal structures.
•Distinguish materials with high elastic moduli and low thermal expansion or vice versa from the potential energy curve.
•Analyse the electron energy distribution in solids using the Fermi – Dirac function
•Sketch the E-k diagram for the electrons in solids, and explain the origin of the band gap.
•Sketch the Brillouin zones for metals, semiconductors and insulators and explain the differences
•Establish the relationship between thermal conductivity, thermal diffusivity, density and specific heat capacity
•Explain how the Fermi energies are effected by carrier concentrations and temperatures in semiconductors
•Obtain a relation for the depletion zone in a p-n junction and explain how it is affected by the bias
•Establish the relation for the p-n junction current with bias
•Depict the energy diagrams for a pnp and npn transistors under forward and reverse bias
•Outline the principles used in lithography for solid state devices
•Explain the principles behind a solar cell, light emitting diodes and semiconductor lasers
•Discuss the distributions of the various ions in a normal and inverse magnetic ferrite
•Explain the origin of the B-H loop in magnetic materials
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