temperature dependence resistivity

Question

Resistivity of intrinsic semiconductors with temperature generally?

RankGuru · Accepted Answer

1. **Conduction Physics**: Resistivity depends on the carrier concentration ($n$) and mobility ($\mu$).
2. **Intrinsic Behavior**: In a semiconductor, $n$ increases exponentially with temperature because of thermal generation of electron-hole pairs ($n \propto e^{-E_g / 2kT}$).
3. **Dominating Effect**: While mobility decreases slightly due to lattice scattering, the massive increase in carrier density $n$ dominates.
4. **Result**: As temperature rises, conductivity increases, which means **resistivity decreases**.
5. **Comparison**: Metals have a positive temperature coefficient of resistance (resistance increases), while semiconductors have a **negative temperature coefficient**.

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temperature dependence resistivity

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