Weyl Semimetals (WSM) for Electronics Applications
- Magazine Article
- 20AERP02_11
- English
Air Force Research Laboratory, Arlington, Virginia
The major factor determining transport properties of solids is the number of electron states in a vicinity of Fermi level. In equilibrium, no macroscopic flow of electrons exists and, therefore, in order to create such flow, electrons must be excited over their equilibrium distribution. However, electrons with energies well below the Fermi level (compared to the characteristic energy scale
An elementary classification of materials as conductors and insulators is, therefore, based on the relation between the Fermi level and the energy bands characterizing electron states in the solid. In metals, such as copper or silver, the Fermi level is inside the band and, therefore, metals have high electric and thermal conductivities. In insulators, for instance, silicon dioxide (SiO2) or crystal sodium chloride (NaCl), the Fermi level is inside the wide, conventionally more than 4 eV, bandgap separating valence and conduction (below and above the Fermi level, respectively) bands, for example, Δ ≈ 8.9 eV in SiO2 and Δ ≈ 8.5 eV in NaCl.