Photomagnetothermal Effect in Semiconductors

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Abstract
The establishment of a temperature distribution in a solid by optically excited diffusing and recombining carriers has been called the photothermal (PT) effect and has previously been described by the authors for certain special cases in semiconductors. The related effect with magnetic field is called the photomagnetothermal (PMT) effect. The paper gives a formulation of the theory governing the PMT effect and the case of weak magnetic fields and small temperature elevations in an infinite slab is worked out in detail. An apparatus for measuring the effect as a function of temperature is described and experimental data are presented, giving for the first time proof of the existence of this effect in germanium. Considering the experimental difficulties the agreement between theory and measurements is quite good.