Drude model with and without an electric field

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the Drude model of electrical conduction, specifically examining the behavior of electrons in the presence and absence of an electric field. Participants explore the implications of these conditions on energy transfer between electrons and lattice ions, as well as the mathematical formulation of electron motion within the model.

Discussion Character

  • Technical explanation
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant questions why energy transfer from electrons to ions occurs only in the presence of an electric field, suggesting that without the field, electrons do not transfer energy.
  • Another participant challenges this notion by referencing an assumption of the Drude model that electrons reach equilibrium with local temperature after collisions, implying that they lose as much energy as they gain.
  • A subsequent post clarifies that in the presence of an electric field, electrons gain energy between collisions and transfer kinetic energy to lattice ions, equating this energy transfer to the work done by the electric field on the electrons.
  • Further elaboration includes a description of the equation of motion for electrons in the medium, incorporating a linear friction term and discussing the relationship between drift velocity and electric current.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on the conditions under which energy transfer occurs between electrons and ions, indicating that there is no consensus on the implications of the Drude model in the absence of an electric field.

Contextual Notes

The discussion includes assumptions about electron behavior and interactions with the medium, which may not be universally accepted or fully resolved within the context of the Drude model.

aaronll
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Why in the Drude model without e-field no energy is transfer by electrons to ions, but when there is an e-field electrons transfer energy to ions ?
 
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aaronll said:
Why in the Drude model without e-field no energy is transfer by electrons to ions
What, precisely, gives you that impression ?
One of the assumptions says
The electron is considered to be immediately at equilibrium with the local temperature after a collision.
i.e. the electrons pick up just as much energy as they lose.

##\ ##
 
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BvU said:
What, precisely, gives you that impression ?
One of the assumptions says i.e. the electrons pick up just as much energy as they lose.

##\
that is clear, right, so with an electric field electron gain energy between collision and they transfer energy (kinetic energy) to lattice ion, and that energy is equal to the work done by the e-field on the electron?
So in "reality" electron gains velocity between collision but they lose that energy in collision and on average the velocity is the drift velocity?
 
It's an effective description of an electron in the medium. The interaction with the medium is described by a linear friction term and thus the equation of motion for the electron reads
$$m \dot{\vec{v}}=-\frac{m}{\tau} \vec{v}-e \vec{E}.$$
If ##\tau## is small enough the velocity "relaxes" quickly to the equilibrium limit, where the force vanishes, i.e.,
$$\vec{v}=-\frac{e \tau}{m} \vec{E}.$$
Now for DC you assume the electrons within the conductor are all independent and then the relation to the elctric current is
$$\vec{j}=-e n \vec{v}=\frac{e^2 n \tau}{m} \vec{E} \; \Rightarrow \; \sigma=\frac{e^2 n \tau}{m}.$$
 
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