Kronig-Penney model

Kronig-Penney model

An idealized, one-dimensional model of a crystal which exhibits many of the basic features of the electronic structure of real crystals. Consider the potential energy V(x) of an electron shown in the illustration with an infinite sequence of potential wells of depth -V0 and width a, arranged with a spacing b. The width and the curvatures of the allowed bands increase with energy. The Kronig-Penney model has been extended to include the effects of impurity atoms. See Band theory of solids

Potential energy which is assumed for the one-dimensional Kronig-Penney modelPotential energy which is assumed for the one-dimensional Kronig-Penney model

Kronig-Penney model

[′krō·nig ′pen·ē ‚mäd·əl] (solid-state physics) An idealized one-dimensional model of a crystal in which the potential energy of an electron is an infinite sequence of periodically spaced square wells.