❖ Condensed Matter Physics:

It is the study of large number of atoms and molecules that are “stuck together”. Solids and liquids
are examples. In condensed matter state many molecules interact with each other. The physics of
such a system is quite different from that of the individual molecules because of collective effects.
Qualitatively new things happen because there are many interacting particles. The behavior of
most of the objects in our every day experience is dominated by collective effects. Examples of
materials where such effects are important are crystals and magnets.

❖ Solid State Physics:

It is the study of how atoms arrange themselves into solids and what properties these solids have.
The atoms arrange in particular patterns because the patterns minimize the energy in a binding,
which is typically with more than one neighbor in a solid.

❖ Is there any difference between solid state physics and condensed matter physics?

Yes, there is a difference between them. Like condensed matter physics focus on the commonality
of scientific problems faced by physicists who work on solids, liquids, plasma and other complex
matter, while solid state physics is often in association with restricted industrial applications of
metals and semiconductors.

❖ Insulator:

Any substance which does not allow to flow electrical or thermal currents is called insulator.
Examples include plastics, styrofoam, paper, rubber, glass and dry air.

❖ Conductor:

Any substance which allows to flow electrical or thermal currents is called insulator. Examples
include metals, aqueous solutions of salt (ionic compounds dissolved in water), graphite and
human body.
❖ Semiconductor:

Any substance which have a conductivity between conductors and non-conductors is called
semiconductor. Silicon (Si), Germanium (Ge) and Gallium Arsenide (GaAs) are some of the most
commonly used semiconductors. Silicon is used in electronic circuit fabrication and Gallium
Arsenide is used in solar cells, laser diodes etc.

❖ Types of Semiconductors:

Semiconductors are divided into two categories i-e (1) Intrinsic Semiconductor and (2) Extrinsic
Semiconductor.

Intrinsic Semiconductor Extrinsic Semiconductor

(i) Pure semiconductor. (i) Impure semiconductor.
(ii) Density of electrons is equal to the (ii) Density of electrons is equal to the
density of holes. density of holes.
(iii) Electrical conductivity is low. (iii) Electrical conductivity is high.
(iv) Dependence on temperature only. (iv) Dependence on temperature as-well-as on
the amount of impurity.
(v) No impurities. (v) Trivalent impurity, pentavalent impurity.

❖ Lattice:

An array of infinite periodic arrangement of points in space is called lattice, and each point is
known as lattice site.

❖ Basis:

The atoms or molecules attached to the lattice sites are called Basis.

❖ Crystal:

A periodic repetition of identical structural units in space is called a crystal.

Lattice + Basis → Crystal

❖ Single Crystal:

A monocrystalline solid with no grain boundaries is called single crystal. The entire crystal lattice
is continuous and unbroken.

❖ Polycrystalline:

A solid consists of many small crystals or grains is called polycrystalline.

❖ Grains/Crystallites:

A bunch of small crystals separated by boundaries are called grains/crystallites.

❖ Grains Boundary:

The interface between two grains or crystallites is called grain boundary.

❖ Unit Cell:

The smallest building block of a crystal structure is called unit cell. The repetition of the unit cell
forms the entire crystal.

❖ Crystal Growth:

The action of crystal growth yields a crystalline solid whose atoms or molecules are closely packed
with fixed positions in space relative to each other.

❖ Types of Crystal Growth Methods:

The basic growth methods available for crystal growth are as under;

(1) Growth from melt

(2) Growth from vapour
(3) Growth from solution
(4) Growth from solid

Note: Further detail can be followed by reading a paper (pdf) “DIFFERENT TYPES OF
CRYSTAL GROWTH METHODS”
❖ Crystallography:

The science which deals with the arrangement of atoms in crystalline solids and with the geometric
structure of crystal lattices is called crystallography. Crystallography is used by materials scientists
to characterize different materials. All macroscopic properties like electrical conductivity, color,
density, elasticity and more are determined by and can be calculated from the microscopic
structure.

❖ Imperfections in Crystals:

The understanding of crystals in terms of atoms has two parts;

(1) Theory of Perfect Crystals
(2) Theory of Imperfections
In calling a crystal perfect, we mean that the atoms form a regular pattern such as FCC or BCC.
By an imperfection, we mean a small region where the regular pattern breaks down and some
atoms are not properly surrounded by neighbor. By small, we mean that the region extends only a
few atomic diameters in at least one dimension. A lattice vacancy is a simple example of an
imperfection. We shall not use the term imperfection to include elastic strains, thermal vibrations
or other small distortions that leave the crystal structure clearly recognizable. One can understand
many properties of crystals by regarding them as “perfect” that is, the imperfections contribute in
proportion to their relative volume. Therefore, in reasonably good crystals they can be neglected.
Such properties are called “structure insensitive”. Some examples are elastic constants, resistivity
and heat capacity. Other properties (such as mechanical strength) are highly sensitive to crystal
perfections, even one imperfection of the proper type could reduce the strength by orders of
magnitude. Internal friction and creep rate are other “structure -Sensitive” properties. Examples of
imperfections of structure are vacancies, interstitial and impurity atoms, stacking faults in closed-
packed crystal, twin boundaries and in particular dislocations. Structural imperfections should be
distinguished from electronic imperfections (such as holes in the valance bonds of
semiconductors). The common point imperfections in crystals are chemical impurities, vacant
lattice sites and extra atoms not in regular lattice positions. Linear imperfections are treated under
dislocations. The crystal surface is a planar imperfection, with electron, phonon and magnon
surface states. Some important properties of crystals are controlled as much by imperfections, as
by the composition of the host crystal, which may act only as a solvent or matrix or vehicle from
the imperfection. The conductivity of some semiconductors is due entirely to trace amounts of
chemical impurities. The color and luminescence of many crystal arise from impurities or
imperfections. Atomic diffusion may be accelerated enormously by impurities or imperfections.
Mechanical and plastic properties are usually controlled by imperfections.

❖ Defects in Crystals:

In an ideal lattice each atom is at its distinguished position. Deviations from the ideal structure are
called defects. Point defects are deviations from the ideal structure involving essentially only one
lattice point. The simplest point defect is a vacancy, a missing atom at an atomic position. If an
atom is at position that does not belong to the crystal structure, an interstitial is formed.

❖ Types of Defects in Crystals:

(1) Schottky Defect
(2) Frenkel Defect
(1) Schottky Defect:

The simplest imperfection is a lattice vacancy, which is a missing atom or ion, also known as
Schottky defect. We create a Schottky defect in a perfect crystal by transferring an atom from a
lattice site in the interior to a lattice site on the surface of the crystal, as shown in figure. In thermal
equilibrium a certain number of lattice vacancies are always present in an otherwise perfect crystal,
because the entropy is increased by the presence of disorder in the structure.
The probability that a given site is vacant is proportional to the Boltzmann factor for thermal
equilibrium;

(1)
Where Ev is the energy required to take energy an atom from a lattice site inside the crystal to a
lattice site on the surface.
If there are N atoms, the equilibrium number n of vacancies is given by the Boltzmann factor as;

(2)
If , then
 (3)
n
If Ev  1 eV and T  1000K , then  e −12  10−5 .
N
The equilibrium concentration of vacancies decreases as the temperature decreases. The actual
concentration of vacancies will be higher than the equilibrium value if the crystal is grown at an
elevated temperature and then cooled suddenly, thereby freezing in the vacancies.
In ionic crystal it is usually energetically favorable to form roughly equal number of positive and
negative ion vacancies. The formation of pairs of vacancies keeps the crystal electrostatically
neutral on a local scale. From a statistical calculation we obtain for the number of pairs;

(4)
Where Ep is the energy of formation of pair.

(2) Frenkel Defect:

In this type of crystal defect, an atom is transferred from a lattice site to an interstitial position, a
position normally not occupied by an atom. In pure alkali halides the most common lattice
vacancies are Schottky defects; in pure silver halides the most common vacancies are Frenkel
defects.
If the number n of Frenkel defects is much smaller than the number of lattice sites N and the
number of interstitial sites N / , the result is;

(5)
Where E1 is the energy necessary to remove an atom from a lattice site to an interstitial position.
Figure shows Schottky and Frenkel defects in an ionic crystal. The arrows indicate the
displacement of the ions. In a Schottky defect the ion ends up on the surface of the crystal; in a
Frenkel defect the ion is removed to an interstitial position.
The diffusion of a vacancy in one direction is equivalent to the diffusion of an atom in the opposite
direction. When lattice defects are generated thermally, their energy of formation gives an extra
contribution to the heat capacity of the crystal, as shown in the following figure. Heat capacity of
silver bromide exhibiting the excess heat capacity from the formation of lattice defects.