Does the heat capacity change for a metallic system?

AI Thread Summary
The heat capacity of metallic systems follows the Debye model, which indicates that in three dimensions, heat capacity is proportional to the temperature cubed. While this relationship holds for the lattice contribution in metals, there is an additional, smaller contribution from free electrons that becomes significant only at very low temperatures. Therefore, in certain temperature ranges, the cubic relationship is applicable to metals. The discussion emphasizes that the Debye model is relevant for understanding heat capacity in metallic systems. Overall, the findings clarify how heat capacity behaves in metals compared to non-metallic systems.
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In class we derived the relationship between temperature and heat capacity for the Debye model. We found that in 3D the heat capacity is proportional to temperature cubed. My question is, would this relationship change in a metallic system?
 
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The Debye model is applied to the heat capacity of the lattice. This contribution applies to metals too.
In metals there is another contribution from the free electrons but it is quite small and it shows up only at very low temperatures.
So yes, there is a range of temperatures in metals where the cubic law applies quite well.
See this illustration, for example:
http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/thermo/imgheat/silisph.gif
 
nasu said:
The Debye model is applied to the heat capacity of the lattice. This contribution applies to metals too.
In metals there is another contribution from the free electrons but it is quite small and it shows up only at very low temperatures.
So yes, there is a range of temperatures in metals where the cubic law applies quite well.
See this illustration, for example:
http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/thermo/imgheat/silisph.gif

This explains a lot, thank you very much for your answer!
 
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