THE HALL EFFECT AND THE SPECIFIC RESISTANCE 
OF THIN SILVER FILMS 
G. R. WAIT 
ABSTRACT 
1. The Hall Effect of ordinary metals may be expressed by 
the equation E=HIa/e where E= the Hall Effect, 1= the 
primary current, e= the thickness of the conductor and a= a 
constant whose value in silver lies between .00083 to .00090. In 
the present investigation the above equation was found to hold in 
thin silver films, and that a has a value of .00084. 
2. In thin films the specific resistances have by many inves- 
tigators been found to be abnormally great at a critical thickness. 
In the case of silver, this critical thickness lies between 15X10“^ 
cm. and 50X10~’' cm. Various theories have been advanced to 
explain this increase in resistance. The films upon which the Hall 
Effect was measured were first measured for specific resistance. 
The results together with the results for Hall Effect are plotted 
against thickness in figure 38. 
Fig. 38 
