Thermal conductivity and Lorenz function of zinc under pressure

The thermal conductivity and the Lorenz function L of polycrystalline zinc have been calculated from measured values of the thermal diffusivity a and the electrical resistivity as functions of pressure P up to 2 GPa at room temperature. The effects of convection in, and freezing of, the pressure transmitting medium are discussed. Both and L increase with increasing P, with pressure coefficients of 8.7×10^–2 and 1.5×10^–2 GPa^–1, respectively. The volume dependence of L is found to be similar to that found for other simple metals. Data are also given for the Seebeck coefficient S as a function of P and for a(T) and (T) between 55 and 300 K.