Interaction of low-energy electrons with surface lattice vibrations

In the present article, we examine the interaction of low-energy electrons near the crystal surface with lattice vibrations of the surface region. Our primary attention is devoted to the use of the inelastic scattering of low-energy electrons to elucidate the nature of this interaction, and to obtain information about the nature of atomic vibrations in and near the surface. We review both the theoretical and the experimental literature in this area, within the framework of a discussion of the concepts which are required to interpret the data. We also present a discussion of a number of closely related topics, such as the origin of the image potential in ionic crystals, the properties of the surface polaron, the surface dynamic effective charge and its possible relation to the phenomenon of surface reconstruction, and the scattering by electronic excitations of low-energy electrons incident on the surface.