Amorphous Silicon Thermometer

Abstract

The carbon glass resistance thermometers (CGRT) shows an unstable drift by heat cycles. Since we were looking for a more stable element of thermometer for cryogenic and high magnetic field environments, we selected amorphous silicon as a substitute for CGRT. The resistance of many amorphous samples were measured at 4K, at 77K, and at 300K. We eventually found an amorphous silicon (Si-H) alloy whose the sensitivity below 77K was comparable to that of the germanium resistance thermometer with little magnetic field influence.