In Physics 152A you learned about electrons moving independently of lattice vibrations and about phonons (lattice vibrations) moving independently of electrons. In reality, electrons and phonons interact with each other. The electron-phonon interaction plays an important role in a variety of properties of materials, particularly of metals.
In particular, it is believed by almost everybody that the electron-phonon interaction is responsible for superconductivity in the so-called "conventional superconductors", a large subset of the known superconducting materials.
In the course lectures we will deal only briefly with the electron-phonon interaction, we will not cover it in the depth that it deserves given the large amount of attention and scientific literature that has been devoted to it.
To compensate for that, in this Special Topic Paper I would like you to pick a material (for example, but not necessarily, an element), or a class of material compounds (not too big), and study and explain to the rest of us interesting manifestations of the electron-phonon interaction in that material or class of materials, including or not superconductivity.
You should aim to understand how large is the electron-phonon interaction in your material(s), which experiments tell you about it, how it is understood theoretically, what determines its magnitude and properties, what are its physical manifestations, etc.
If the material you picked is a superconductor, you should address the question whether or not the electron-phonon interaction is responsible for its superconductivity. If the material you picked is not a superconductor, see if you can understand why the electron-phonon interaction does not give rise to superconductivity in your material. For a list of superconducting materials, including "conventional" and "unconventional", you can use the reference Physica C Volume 514 (2015) that reviews a large number of superconducting materials classes.
Use the Web of Science, Google, references in books and papers, and search in journals' websites (e.g. Phys. Rev. B) to find information. Your paper should cover information you find in several sources, not in just one paper.
Once you decide which material(s) you will study send me an email with subject "152B special topic" giving that information. To avoid duplication, if your material/s is/are the same as those chosen by another student I will email you asking you to pick other ones. Check the list of materials chosen so far before emailing me.
The goal of this project is that you get to understand the role(s) of the electron-phonon interaction in your material(s), write a paper on it and make a presentation to the class, so we all get to learn more about the electron-phonon interaction in a variety of materials.
The length of the paper is up to you, I suggest between 5 and 7 pages. At the end of your paper, give a list of the references you used (that you should cite in the paper), including hyperlinks so they can be easily found. Your paper should be in pdf format.
In addition to writing the paper, prepare a powerpoint or keynote presentation 10-12 minutes long to explain what you learned, which you will deliver to the class at the final exam or the last week of classes.
Start early. The sooner you decide on your material(s), the better the chance that you will not have to switch them.
You should have decided your materials and emailed me with that information no later than April 25.
I would like to see an outline/draft of your paper no later than May 16, so I can give you some useful feedback.
The paper is due on June 4 (Tuesday of 10th week).
A draft or final version of your presentation (powerpoint or keynote) is due
Thu June 6.