Galvanomagnetic effects and alloy scattering in n‐type Pb_1–xSn_xTe at low temperatures

Abstract

Abstract Galvanomagnetic effects are investigated in n‐type Pb 1‐‐‐x Sn x Te with comparatively low carrier concentration (1.4 × 10 17 to 3.5 × 10 18 cm ―3 ) grown from the melt. From the analysis of the longitudinal and transverse magnetoresistances and Hall coefficient at low temperatures together with the Shubnikov‐de Haas data, it is found that the scattering is very much isotropic in spite of the large anisotropy of the effective mass. Further analysis of the scattering relaxation time, τ, indicates that the alloy scattering is dominant at low tmperatures. The matrix elements of the alloy scattering potential at the band edges are deduced; U c (Pb‐Sn) = 8.2 × 10 ―35 erg cm 3 and U v (Pb‐Sn) ≈ 3 U c (Pb‐Sn). These values are close to those estimated from the pseudopotential theory of alloy scattering after Harrison.