Hall effect | Definition & Facts (2024)

physics

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The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.

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Last Updated: Article History

Key People:
Robert B. Laughlin
David Thouless
Daniel C. Tsui
Horst L. Störmer
Duncan Haldane
Related Topics:
Hall current
Hall field
Hall voltage
magnetoresistance
metallic conduction

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Hall effect, development of a transverse electric field in a solid material when it carries an electric current and is placed in a magnetic field that is perpendicular to the current. This phenomenon was discovered in 1879 by the U.S. physicist Edwin Herbert Hall. The electric field, or Hall field, is a result of the force that the magnetic field exerts on the moving positive or negative particles that constitute the electric current. Whether the current is a movement of positive particles, negative particles in the opposite direction, or a mixture of the two, a perpendicular magnetic field displaces the moving electric charges in the same direction sideways at right angles to both the magnetic field and the direction of current flow. The accumulation of charge on one side of the conductor leaves the other side oppositely charged and produces a difference of potential. An appropriate meter may detect this difference as a positive or negative voltage. The sign of this Hall voltage determines whether positive or negative charges are carrying the current.

In metals, the Hall voltages are generally negative, indicating that the electric current is composed of moving negative charges, or electrons. The Hall voltage is positive, however, for a few metals such as beryllium, zinc, and cadmium, indicating that these metals conduct electric currents by the movement of positively charged carriers called holes. In semiconductors, in which the current consists of a movement of positive holes in one direction and electrons in the opposite direction, the sign of the Hall voltage shows which type of charge carrier predominates. The Hall effect can be used also to measure the density of current carriers, their freedom of movement, or mobility, as well as to detect the presence of a current on a magnetic field.

The Hall voltage that develops across a conductor is directly proportional to the current, to the magnetic field, and to the nature of the particular conducting material itself; the Hall voltage is inversely proportional to the thickness of the material in the direction of the magnetic field. Because various materials have different Hall coefficients, they develop different Hall voltages under the same conditions of size, electric current, and magnetic field. Hall coefficients may be determined experimentally and may vary with temperature.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia BritannicaThis article was most recently revised and updated by Adam Augustyn.

Hall effect | Definition & Facts (2024)

FAQs

What is the Hall effect in short answer? ›

The Hall effect is the deflection of electrons (holes) in an n-type (p-type) semiconductor with current flowing perpendicular to a magnetic field. The deflection of these charged carriers sets up a voltage, called the Hall voltage, whose polarity depends on the effective charge of the carrier.

What is the Hall effect for dummies? ›

The Hall Effect takes place when you set current flowing through a conductor which is a material such as copper or silver that permits electrons to flow freely across the entire surface area. The electrons begin to flow in a straight line from one side of the conductor to the other.

What is Hall effect PDF? ›

HALL EFFECT: When a current carrying conductor is placed in a magnetic field perpendicular to the flow of current then it is observed an electric field is created perpendicular to both flow of charge carriers and magnetic field, this field is know as Hall field and corresponding effect is called Hall effect. Page 4. ▪

What does the Hall effect determine? ›

As a result, the Hall effect is very useful as a means to measure either the carrier density or the magnetic field. One very important feature of the Hall effect is that it differentiates between positive charges moving in one direction and negative charges moving in the opposite.

Why is Hall effect so important? ›

Hall effect is used to determine if a substance is a semiconductor or an insulator. The nature of the charge carriers can be measured.

What are the two forces in Hall effect? ›

Lorentz Force and Electric Field Force are the two forces acting on the electron in hall effect setup. The Hall effect results from the way a conductor's current behaves. Numerous tiny charge carriers, often electrons, holes, ions (see Electromigration), or all three, flow as current.

What is the aim of Hall effect? ›

Question: The Hall Effect Aim The Hall effect is a commonly used method to determine the current carrier density and type (electrons or holes) in a semiconductor by analysing the effect of an external, constant magnetic field, on a current moving through a semiconductor.

What is the formula for the Hall effect? ›

The force on the charges due to the electric field is balanced by the magnetic force, so: qE = qvdB, and E = vdB, so the Hall voltage is: VH = -vdBd, where vd is the drift velocity of the charges.

What are the advantages of Hall effect? ›

Advantages of Using Hall Effect Switches

Hall effect switches can perform multiple sensor tasks, including position sensing, proximity detecting, directional movement, speed tracking, and current sensing. This feature is greatly beneficial in the electronic and automotive industries.

Why is Hall effect negative? ›

In this case, those positive charges will be deflected upwards. Thus, if positive charges flow, the top side of the Hall probe becomes positive, whereas it becomes negative if it is negative charges that flow.

What is the abstract of the Hall effect? ›

Abstract: The Hall effect was discovered by Edwin Hall in 1879. Hall found that when a magnet was placed with its field flowing perpendicular to the face of a thin rectangle of gold through which current was flowing, a difference in potential appeared at the opposite edges.

What are Hall effect triggers? ›

The Hall effect is most often used to provide gamers with frictionless inputs for buttons, triggers, joysticks, and even keyboard keys in some cases. Basically, instead of having sensors rely on these pieces to push against an internal input, Hall effect sensors allow input to be received magnetically.

What is Hall effect in simple words? ›

Hall effect is defined as the production of a voltage difference across an electrical conductor which is transverse to an electric current, and with respect to an applied magnetic field, it is perpendicular to the current.

What Cannot be determined by Hall effect? ›

The hall effect cannot be used to determine the magnetic field, which does not act perpendicular to the direction of the electric field.

What is the Hall effect proportional to? ›

Where B is the magnetic flux density. I is the current through the Hall effect sensor. From the above relation, the Hall voltage is directly proportional to both l and B.

What is the summary of the Hall effect experiment? ›

The Hall Effect experiment (conducted by Edwin Hall in 1879) determines the sign of the charge carriers in current flow. A current can be thought of as a negative charge moving in one direction (Figure 1) or as a positive charge moving in the opposite direction (Figure 2).

What is Hall effect and its expression? ›

E=Vl where V is the potential difference across the conductor and l is the length of the conductor across which the voltage is measured. Where V is the Hall Voltage developed across the length of the conductor. Hall Effect can also be derived in a different way.

What is the Hall effect in psychology? ›

The halo effect (sometimes called the halo error) is the proclivity for positive impressions of a person, company, country, brand, or product in one area to positively influence one's opinion or feelings.

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