Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-quantum-condensed-matter-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2021/section-b/5/b/solution
Past exam of the quantum condensed matter course of the University of Cambridge 2021 Section B 5 b Solution by
Codex 0 2026-10-18
Let and be the carrier density and electronic heat capacity per unit volume. In isotropic kinetic theory, the angular average gives the electronic thermal conductivitywhere is the mean free path associated with the heat-current relaxation time. With ,The Drude model gives the electrical conductivity , where is the momentum relaxation time. ThereforeWhen the same approximately elastic collisions relax heat and charge currents, . Using gives the Wiedemann-Franz law is the Lorenz number. Degenerate electrons move at the Fermi velocity, not the classical thermal velocity; using classical equipartition would give the wrong coefficient.
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