Relaxation times in AgAu and AgCu alloys

Abstract

Calculations have been made of the relaxation times for electrons on the Fermi surface of Ag due to scattering from dilute concentrations of Au and Cu impurities. In the case of AgAu alloys it has been found that the relaxation times are primarily determined by the mass-velocity and Darwin relativistic corrections to the potential seen by an electron. In AgCu alloys the relativistic corrections are still important and the calculated relaxation times depend critically on cancellation between `potential' scattering and `relativistic scattering' and possibly the effects of the strain field.