Evan O'Neill Kane (physicist) facts for kids

Evan O'Neill Kane (born December 23, 1924 – died March 23, 2006) was an American physicist. He helped us understand how semiconductors work. These special materials are used in almost all modern electronics, like your phone or computer! Kane was a key person in developing a special math method called the k·p perturbation theory. This method helps scientists figure out how electrons behave inside these materials.

The Life of Evan O'Neill Kane

Evan O'Neill Kane was born on December 23, 1924, in Kane, Pennsylvania. When he was young, his father passed away in 1933. Later, Evan moved with his mother and siblings to Daytona Beach, Florida. He lived there through his high school years.

His Career in Science

Kane started college at Princeton University. He paused his studies to serve in the army during World War II. After the war, he finished his degree at Princeton in 1948. He then went to Cornell University to study for his PhD in Physics. He earned his PhD in 1953. His project was about vacuum tube technology.

After college, Kane joined the General Electric Research Laboratory. This was in Schenectady, New York. There, he started working on the ideas behind the new field of semiconductor research. He wrote many articles for science journals. One of his most famous papers came out in 1956. It described a way to calculate the structure of solid materials. This method is known as the k·p method.

In 1959, Kane left General Electric. He moved to California to work for Hughes Aircraft. Then, in 1961, he joined Bell Laboratories in New Jersey. He kept doing his semiconductor research at Bell Labs. He worked where experiments and theories met. He stayed there until AT&T was split up. He then worked for BellCore until he retired in 1984.

His Personal Life

Evan Kane married Anne Bassler in 1950. They lived together for over 40 years in New Providence, New Jersey. They raised three children there. They even wrote one science paper together! In 1974, he became one of the top marathon runners in the country for people aged 50 and over. After retiring, he spent most of his time caring for young children. This included his grandchildren and kids from his church group. He passed away in 2006 at age 81 due to health issues.

The Kane Model of Semiconductors

Evan Kane used the k·p perturbation method to create what is now called the Kane model. It is also known as the Kane Hamiltonian. This model helps explain the energy bands inside semiconductors. Think of energy bands as pathways for electrons inside a material. The Kane Hamiltonian describes these pathways in many common semiconductors.

His 1957 paper on this model is still very important today. Scientists and textbooks still refer to it more than 50 years later. It has been cited thousands of times. The model is often mentioned in important books, like Fundamentals of Semiconductors.

Other scientists have written whole chapters explaining Kane's models. They noted that Kane's method worked very well for semiconductors with small band gaps. A band gap is like an energy hurdle electrons must jump over. Kane made earlier models better by adding the lowest conduction band. This model was later improved. It now explains materials like gallium arsenide (GaAs). The Kane model helps us understand how most materials in semiconductor technology work. It is also key to understanding quantum effects in tiny structures.

Selected Publications

• Kane, E. O. (1956). "ENERGY BAND STRUCTURE IN P-TYPE GERMANIUM AND SILICON." Journal of Physics and Chemistry of Solids 1(1-2): 82-99.
• Kane, E. O. (1957). "BAND STRUCTURE OF INDIUM ANTIMONIDE." Journal of Physics and Chemistry of Solids 1(4): 249-261.
• Kane, E. O. (1959). "THE SEMI-EMPIRICAL APPROACH TO BAND STRUCTURE." Journal of Physics and Chemistry of Solids 8: 38-44.
• Kane, E. O. (1959). "ZENER TUNNELING IN SEMICONDUCTORS." Journal of Physics and Chemistry of Solids 12(2): 181-188.
• Kane, E. O. (1961). "THEORY OF TUNNELING." Journal of Applied Physics 32(1): 83-&.
• Kane, E. O. (1963). "THOMAS-FERMI APPROACH TO IMPURE SEMICONDUCTOR BAND STRUCTURE." Physical Review 131(1): 79-&.
• Kane, E. O. (1967). "ELECTRON SCATTERING BY PAIR PRODUCTION IN SILICON." Physical Review 159(3): 624-&.
• Chandrasekhar, M., Cardona, M. and Kane, E. O. (1977). "INTRABAND RAMAN-SCATTERING BY FREE CARRIERS IN HEAVILY DOPED N-SI." Physical Review B 16(8): 3579-3595.
• Kane, E. O. and A. B. Kane (1978). "DIRECT CALCULATION OF WANNIER FUNCTIONS - SI VALENCE BANDS." Physical Review B 17(6): 2691-2704.
• Baraff, G. A., E. O. Kane and M. Schlueter (1980). "THEORY OF THE SILICON VACANCY - AN ANDERSON NEGATIVE-U SYSTEM." Physical Review B 21(12): 5662-5686.