Electrical Resistivity of Single Crystals of Some Dilute Solid Solutions in Zinc

Sets of single crystals were grown of binary alloys consisting of dilute solid solutions of Cd, Cu, Ag, Au, Ni and Fe, each in zinc. Electrical resistivities at 20°C are expressed in terms of principal resistivities, ${\rho }_0$ and ${\rho }_{90}$, these values coming from the usual ${cos}^2\theta$ ($\theta$=orientation) plot of measured resistivities of a set of crystals. The resistance increases in a given series of alloys with increasing concentration, in a nonlinear fashion. The initial increase in resistivity (above that of pure zinc) in micro ohm-cm per atomic percent of solute is: Cd 0.94, Cu 0.4, Ag 1.1, Au 2.3, Ni 51.0, Fe 300.0. This is correlated with the nearness of the solute metal to zinc in the periodic table. The ratio of principal resistivities is slightly higher than that for the zinc crystal. Temperature coefficients decrease in such a way that Mathiessen's rule is satisfied (with a maximum deviation of 4 percent) for all the alloys.