Abstract
THE potential distribution in a parallelepiped arising from a point source and sink is of practical importance in the measurement of the thickness of plates and tubes1,2, and the electrical conductivity of semiconductors3. A common practical arrangement employs four collinear equi-spaced contacts: current I is passed between the outer pair, and the potential difference V between the inner pair is measured. If the contacts are aligned centrally parallel to the longest side 2α of a rectangular block of material, its width being 2β and its thickness γ in units of the electrode spacing, the conductivity is given by the triple series:
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References
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Van der Hoff, B. M. E., and Benson, G. C., Can. J. Phys., 31, 1087 (1953).
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SIM, A., LEWIN, L. Point Source and Sink in a Parallelepiped. Nature 174, 1155 (1954). https://doi.org/10.1038/1741155a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/1741155a0
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