Band Structure and Electronic Properties of Silver

Abstract

A band-structure calculation for silver has been made using Mueller's interpolation scheme. The first-principles calculation by Segall has been adjusted to give better agreement with experiment, and a set of parameters derived to fit these adjusted bands. A density-of-states calculation using these parameters confirms deductions from experimental work using the photoelectric effect which suggest two main peaks in the $d$-band region. However, we find an additional low-energy peak which has not been observed experimentally and no evidence of structure near the Fermi level. The Fermi surface is computed after a recalculation of the Fermi energy which agrees with Segall's results. Reasonable correlation with the experimental dimensions of the Fermi surface is obtained. Finally, various effective masses are calculated. The value obtained for the electronic specific heat suggests that electron-phonon enhancement is somewhat smaller in silver than in copper.