Atomic physics with the scanning tunneling microscope
Abstract
Backscattering of atomic beams above a given surface yields information similar to the one obtained from scanning the same surface with a scanning tunneling microscope (STM): In both cases the experimentally accessible quantity is the local density of states (LDOS) n(r,E) of the surface. For the case of backscattering, the LDOS at the turning point of the atom is an important ingredient of the potential between atom and surface. In experiments performed with an STM, the LDOS at the apex of an atomically sharp tip can be determined directly. Probing surfaces locally by an STM allows for the study of basic phenomena in atomic physics, with tunneling of electrons in three dimensions being a central issue.
- Publication:
-
The Fifteenth International Conference on the Application of accelerators in research and industry
- Pub Date:
- June 1999
- DOI:
- 10.1063/1.59239
- Bibcode:
- 1999AIPC..475..212K
- Keywords:
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- 34.80.Gs;
- 07.78.+s;
- Molecular excitation and ionization by electron impact;
- Electron positron and ion microscopes;
- electron diffractometers