Valence and conduction bands
bands closest to the Fermi level and thus determine the electrical conductivity of the solid
In solid-state physics, the valence band and conduction band are the bands closest to the Fermi level, and thus determine the electrical conductivity of the solid. In nonmetals, the valence band is the highest range of electron energies in which electrons are normally present at absolute zero temperature, while the conduction band is the lowest range of vacant electronic states. On a graph of the electronic band structure of a semiconducting material, the valence band is located below the Fermi level, while the conduction band is located above it.
The distinction between the valence and conduction bands is meaningless in metals, because conduction occurs in one or more partially filled bands that take on the properties of both the valence and conduction bands.
Band gap
In semiconductors and insulators the two bands are separated by a band gap, while in conductors the bands overlap. A band gap is an energy range in a solid where no electron states can exist due to the quantization of energy. Within the concept of bands, the energy gap between the valence band and the conduction band is the band gap. Electrical conductivity of non-metals is determined by the susceptibility of electrons to be excited from the valence band to the conduction band.
Electrical conductivity
In solids, the ability of electrons to act as charge carriers depends on the availability of vacant electronic states. This allows the electrons to increase their energy (i.e., accelerate) when an electric field is applied.
“Valence and conduction bands” enters the record as bands closest to the Fermi level and thus determine the electrical conductivity of the solid. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Valence, conduction and bands can confirm, complicate or overturn.
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