The crystal growth and thermoelectric properties of chromium disilicide

Abstract

Single crystals of chromium disilicide about 8 mm in diameter and 35 mm long were grown using the floating zone technique. Measurements of electrical resistivity ρ, Hall coefficient R and thermoelectric power α were carried out in the temperature range from 85 to 1100 K. The values of ρ and α showed the anisotropy over the temperature range studied. The ratios parallel and perpendicular to the c-axis were ρ _‖/ρ _⊥=1.9 and α _‖/_α⊥=1.7 respectively, at room temperature. It was found to be a degenerate semiconductor having the hole concentration of 6.3×10²⁰ cm⁻³ below 600 K. The effective masses of holes parallel and perpendicular to the c-axis determined from the thermoelectric power and the hole concentration near room temperature were estimated to be five and three times as large as a free electron mass, respectively. The calculation on the values of α _‖ and α _⊥ was made using those effective masses. These values showed good agreement with the observed values in the temperature range from 150 to 1100 K.