Analytic solution of Ando's surface roughness model with finite domain distribution functions

Abstract

Ando's surface roughness model is applied to metallic nanowires and extended beyond small roughness size and infinite barrier limit approximations for the wavefunction overlaps, such as the Prange-Nee approximation. Accurate and fast simulations can still be performed without invoking these overlap approximations by averaging over roughness profiles using finite domain distribution functions to obtain an analytic solution for the scattering rates. The simulations indicate that overlap approximations, while predicting a resistivity that agrees more or less with our novel approach, poorly estimate the underlying scattering rates. All methods show that a momentum gap between left- and right-moving electrons at the Fermi level, surpassing a critical momentum gap, gives rise to a substantial decrease in resistivity.