Article
Article
Cyclotron resonance experiments
Article By:
Walsh, Walter M. Bell Laboratories, Murray Hill, New Jersey.
Last reviewed:2014
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.177200
The measurement of charge-to-mass ratios of electrically charged particles from the frequency of their helical motion in a magnetic field. Such experiments are particularly useful in the case of conducting crystals, such as semiconductors and metals, in which the motions of electrons and holes are strongly influenced by the periodic potential of the lattice through which they move. Under such circumstances the electrical carriers often have “effective masses” which differ greatly from the mass in free space; the effective mass is often different for motion in different directions in the crystal. Cyclotron resonance is also observed in gaseous plasma discharges and is the basis for a class of particle accelerators. See also: Band theory of solids; Particle accelerator
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