Thermo-electricity at low temperatures. IX. The transition metals as solute and solvent

Abstract

Transition metals (in particular Cr, Mn, Fe, Co and Ni) present as solutes give rise to highly anomalous thermo-electric powers and unusual resistive behaviour at very low temperatures. Following an outline of the theories which have been proposed to account for this behaviour, experimental data are presented on alloys of gold as parent metal with transition element solutes down to very low temperatures, and the results compared broadly with the conclusions of present theory. It is generally believed that the fundamental origin of the anomalous thermo-electric behaviour lies in the spin-dependent scattering of conduction electrons by the magnetic solute ions. Experimental data are also presented of the thermo-electric behaviour down to very low temperatures of alloys of the transition metals Pd and Pt with both transition elements and non-transition elements as solutes.