WHAT DO YOU MEASURE WHEN YOU MEASURE RESISTIVITY

Resistivity measurement is a weighted averaging of local resistivities. We develop a formalism to calculate the weighting function, applying it to square van der Pauw samples and to linear and square four-point probe arrays. In each case, some regions of the sample are negatively weighted, but these regions can be reduced or eliminated by van der Pauw averaging. We discuss negative weighting, which we feel is responsible for spurious reports of superconductivity above room temperature. We show how a square four-point array can be more effective at measuring local resistivity than a linear one. Finally, we show how to apply our formalism to anisotropic materials.