Size Effects in the Longitudinal Magnetoresistance of Thin Silver Films

Abstract

Size effects in the longitudinal magnetoresistance of metal films have been observed at low temperatures and high magnetic fields. Partial specular reflection of conduction electrons is observed in silver films, provided the ratio $\alpha$ of the thickness to the effective-electron mean free path is smaller than 0.5. It is shown that the scattering coefficient (proportion of specularly reflected conduction electrons) can be determined from the size-effect data. Size effects for films with $\alpha >0.5\mathrm{}$ are in agreement with total diffuse-scattering behavior. The dependence of the scattering coefficient on the value of $\alpha$ suggests that the nature of scattering depends on the angle of incidence of the electrons at the surface.