SCHOOL OF BASIC SCIENCES AND RESEARCH, SHARDA UNIVERSITY

PHYSICS LABORATORY MANUAL

Experiment title: To study Hall effect and determine the Hall coefficient,
carrier density and the mobility of a semiconductor material. Expt. No. 3

OBJECTIVE: To study Hall effect and determine the Hall coefficient' carrier
. .

density and the mobility of a semiconductor material.

APPARATUS REQUIRED: Hall probes (Ge crystal n~ype/p·type), Hall effect

setup, electromagnet and digital gaussmeter.

~Formula used:

'C) As shown in Fig. (1), dis the thickness along z·axis of the crystal, Hz is
the magnetic field applied along z·axis. Current I is flowing along x·axis. Hall
voltage VH is developed across the faces normal to y·axis. lis the length of the
crystal along x·axis.

(i). Hall coefficient RH is given by

V.H .d.
RH= I.Hz (volts cm amp· 1gauss· 1) or (x108 cm3coulomb·l)
Where
VH is in volts, I in ampere, din cm and Hz in gauss.

Cii). Carrier density is given by

1
n = RH q cm·3, where q is the elec~ronic charge /
~ ' \

Ciii). Carrier mobility r 1,, \' '

µ = RHa cm 2/volt·sec, where is the conductivity

of the given sample.

THEORY:
An e.m.f. is setup transversely or across a current carrying conductor
when a perpendicular magnetic field is applied. This is called Hall effect.
A static magnetic field has no effect on charge when it is not in motion
but when charge flows, a magnetic field directed perpendicular to the direction
of row produces a mutually perpendicular force on the charge which causes the
electron's path to bend. As a result' of this the electrons accumulates on one side
of the slab and are deficient on the other side. Thus, an electric field is created
in the y·direction, which is called the Hall field, EH. EH can be written as
EH= j RH Hz (1)
 where j is the current density and is given
by j = n q v
where vis the d~ift velocity of the carrier. _ . . nd d Let
Now let us consider a bar of semiconductor havmg the d1mens10n 1, b a _·
current density j is directed along x·axis and H along z·axis, then EH will be
along y ·axis. Then we can write

R{ (VHI b) VHd ( )
2
jHz ' · /Hz
Where VH is the Hall voltage appearing between the two surfaces perpendicular
to b and I=jbd.

'
-~ -
B-
-~

In general Hall voltage is not a linear function of applied field i.e. the Hall
coefficient is not a constant but a function of applied magnetic field.
Consequently, interpretation of Hall voltage is not a simple matter. However, it
is easy to calculate Hall voltage if it is assumed that all the carriers have the
sifYttgScff'rR~~tjfcfttf.11WWWftf ~d'mf:J~ssuming the carriers of only one type are
 3

present. Metal and doped semicoriductors are the example of this type where
cine carrier dominates. 1'reparea 6y 'M.VJ/1£'],ft[)(!{fl srJrg'}{ ~ 'M.O'}{rrS.M-fNI

The magnetic force on the carriers

FM== q (v x H)
is compensated by the Hall fteld. Since Fw-=qEH, we can write
V X H = EH
Substituting all these vaiues in equation (2)

EH vHz 1
RH= - - - (3)
jHz qnvff z nq

From this equation it is clear that the sign of the Hall coefficient depend upon
the sign of q. This means that in p·type RH would be positive while in n·type RH
would be negative. Also for a mixed magnetic field and input current, the Hall
voltage is proportional to 1/n or its resistivity. When one carrier dominates the
conductivity of the material= nq where is the mobility of the charge carriers.

Thus
µ=RHO (4)
Equation (4) provides the experimental measurement of mobility. RH is 1
expressed in cm 3coulumb· 1. Thus the mobility is expressed in units of cin 2volt"
1sec· 1 .

PROCEDURE:
1. Connect the widthwise contacts of the Hall probe to the voltage terminal
and lengthwise contacts to current terminals of the Hall effect setup.
2. Now switch on the Hall effect setup and adjust the current to a few mA
(don't exceed 6 mA).
3. Check the 'zero field potential' by changing the knob to the voltage side.
This voltage is error voltage and should be subtracted from the Hall
voltage reading (when Hall probe is outside the magnetic field) .
4. Now place probe between the magnetic poles and switch on the
electromagnet power supply. Adjust the current to any desired value and
rotate the probe tiH it becomes perpendicular to the magnetic field. Hall
voltage will be maximum in this adjustment.
5. Measure the Hall voltage as a function of current keeping the magnetic
field constant (say, at 1200 Gauss). Plot a graph between current and
Hall voltage .
6. Do the experiment for both n·type and p·type samples .
1.

OBSERVATIONS:

Thickness of the Ge crystal probes = 0.50mm

1
Conductivity a of Ge crystal probe (n·type)= 0.2 ohm· cm·l
Conductivity a of Ge crystal probe (p·type) = 0.125 ohm·1cm·l

Table for the variation of Hall voltage as a function of current

Magnetic field Hz = 1200 Gauss

S.No. Current I Hall

inmA voltage
VHin mV

CALCULATIONS:

1. From the graph (Hall voltage versus current):

Slope of the graph = VHI I = ........... .

RH= slope x (d/Hz) volt cm amp· 1guass· 1

2. Calculate thl charge carrier density from the relation

n=--Cffi·3
RHq
3. Calculate the charg'e carrier mobility using the formula
µ=RH cm 3volf 1sec· 1
 / I

RESULTS:
For n·type material:
The value of Hall coefficient RH= ......... cm 3coulumb· 1
The charge carrier density n = ................ cm·3
The mobility of the charge carrierµ= ............... cm 2volt" 1sec· 1
For P·type material:
The value of Hall coefficient RH= ........... cm 3coulumb"1
The charge carrier density n = ........... . cm· 3
The mobility of the charge carrierµ= ...... cm2volt" 1sec· 1

PRECAUTIONS:
1. Hall probe is placed between the magnetic poles such that Hall voltage is
maximum.
2. The current through the Hall probe should strictly be within the limits
v mentioned by the manufacturer.
3. The distance between the pole pieces of the electromagnet should not be
changed during the whole experiment.

OUTCOME:

Stu.dent wi 11 learn the concept of emf develop in a semiconductor when placed in electric
and magnetic field, understand the direction of Lorentz force and how to calculate the
different parameters such as Hall Co-efficient, carrier density and carrier mobility.

TRY TO ANSWER:
~- --
1. What is Hall effect?
2. How will you-a etermine the direction of the force exerted on the charge
carriers?
3. What is Hall coefficient?
4. What happens to the induced Hall electric field when the strength of
applied magnetic field is increased?
5. What happens to the Hall coefficient when the number of charge carriers
(say electrons) per unit volume is decreased?
6. How does the concentration of charge carriers can be increased in a semi·
conductor?
7. What do you mean by mobility of a charge carrier?
8. How does the mobility of a charge carrier depend on the electrical
conductivity of the specimen?
9. How will you determine the mobility of charge carrier in your
experiment?
10. What are the importance of Hall effect?
11. Which type of the charge carrier has greater mobility?
12. How does the mobility of charge carriers (electrons and holes) vary with
the rise of temperature in semiconductors?