$1/f$ noise in variable range hopping conduction

TL;DR

This paper investigates the origin of 1/f noise in variable range hopping conduction, showing how trap dynamics lead to noise that increases exponentially as temperature decreases, with a smooth transition to nearest neighbor hopping.

Contribution

It introduces a new mechanism linking impurity traps to 1/f noise in variable range hopping, explaining the temperature dependence and transition to nearest neighbor hopping.

Findings

1/f$ noise exponentially increases with decreasing temperature in VRH regime

The theory predicts a smooth transition to weak temperature dependence in NNH case

Trap dynamics are key to understanding noise behavior in disordered conductors

Abstract

A mechanism of $1/f$ noise due to traps formed by impurities which have no neighbors with close energies in their vicinity is studied. Such traps slowly exchange electrons with the rest of conducting media. The concentration of traps and proportional to it $1/f$ noise exponentially grow with decreasing temperature in the variable range hopping regime. This theory provides smooth transition to the nearest neighbor hopping case where it predicts a very weak temperature dependence.