Brillouin Zone Investigation of Mg Alloys. I. Hall Effect and Conductivity

Abstract

The Brillouin zone structure of hexagonal metal, in particular magnesium as calculated by Jones, has been examined by Hall measurements. The theory predicts a strong dependence on alloying, and the Hall data obtained on alloys of magnesium with aluminum or silver seem to corroborate Jones' theory. In the case of the silver alloys, the absolute value of the Hall constant decreases linearly as a function of alloying addition (0.1 at percent silver decreases the Hall constant by 5 percent). In the aluminum alloys the effect is not so great (0.1 at percent aluminum decreases the Hall constant by ∼2 percent) and a break in the Hall constant versus composition curve is detected. This break can be interpreted as being due to Brillouin zone overlap in the $c$ direction.