What is it about?
To make infrared sensors, mercury cadmium telluride (HgCdTe) is the material that provides the best performance. In order to design and analyze infrared devices, it is necessary to know all the properties of HgCdTe. One important property is the electron affinity, which is a measure of how tightly the material holds on to its electrons. We have developed a new formula for the electron affinity that is much more accurate than the previously one. We have also clarified the question of energy band lineup at the junction between two different samples of HgCdTe.
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Why is it important?
This puts the electron affinity value on a much more solid footing, by means of a rigorous derivation. It enables future HgCdTe calculations to be more reliable.
Perspectives
When doing some calculations of HgCdTe devices, I began to question the existing formula for electron affinity. After tracing down the origin, I discovered that is was inaccurate and not logically justified. I then went back to the basics and developed the improved formula.
David Rhiger
Raytheon Co
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: The electron affinity of HgCdTe, Journal of Applied Physics, October 2025, American Institute of Physics,
DOI: 10.1063/5.0300709.
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