Relaxation and shift of the precession frequency of the spin of a negative muon in n-type silicon

The residual polarization of negative muons in n-type silicon with impurity density (1.6±0.2) · 1013 cm−3 is investigated as a function of temperature in the range 10–300 K. The measurements are performed in an external magnetic field of 0.08 T oriented transversely to the spin of the muons. Relaxation of the muon spin and a shift of the precession frequency are observed at temperatures below 30 K. The relaxation rate at 30 K equals 0.25±0.08 μs−1. The shift of the precession frequency at 20 K equals 7 · 10−3. Both the relaxation rate and the shift of the precession frequency increase as the temperature decreases. At temperatures below 30 K the relaxation rate is described well by the relation Λ=bT−q, where q=2.8±0.2.