Theory of many-body effects in sub-microelectronic systems

A new interpretation of the anomalous dispersion process which is observed at low frequencies is presented which is based on a realistic description of the structural ordering and fluctuation in carrier dominated dielectrics. It is shown that this form of response occurs for systems of low spatial dimensionality and generates a sample-size dependent conductivity. The relationship of the mechanism to that of power law noise in electrical systems is identified and the structural interpretation explored. Particular features of hydrogen bonded systems are described in which the dispersion is likely to be important in a biological context. It is pointed out that the process is directly relevant to solid-state batteries such as those based on fast-ion conductors such as Beta-alumina.