LORENZ NUMBERS OF PURE ALUMINUM, SILVER, AND GOLD AT LOW TEMPERATURES

Abstract

Measurements have been made of the thermal and electrical conductivities at low temperatures on specimens of pure aluminum, silver, and gold. The resistivities caused by scattering of the electrons by lattice waves and by impurities have been separated and the Lorenz number has been deduced for these specimens. The Lorenz number calculated from the impurity resistivities for these pure metals agrees with the theoretical Sommerfeld value within an experimental error of about [Formula: see text]. The possible influence of an electron–electron interaction on these results is discussed.