Structure and electronic structure of quasicrystal and approximant surfaces: a photoemission study

The structure and electronic structure of different high-symmetry surfaces of either quasicrystalline or approximant Al–Pd–Mn were studied by means of photoemission-based techniques such as X-ray photoelectron diffraction (XPD) and ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy. We find that the twofold (2f), 3f and 5f surfaces of icosahedral Al–Pd–Mn exhibit all the symmetry elements of the icosahedral non-crystallographic group. These XPD experiments can be modeled by single-scattering cluster calculations.

The bulk-terminated icosahedral or approximant surfaces are recovered after ion sputtering followed by annealing at T≈500–600 °C. A wealth of ordered surface phases (with different compositions) are found after sputtering and depending on the annealing temperature as, for example, a crystalline bcc multitwinned phase (for T<400 °C) or a stable decagonal quasicrystalline surface (for T>650 °C).

The icosahedral surfaces are characterised by a lowering of the density of states close to the Fermi edge, compatible with the opening of a pseudogap, as expected for a quasicrystal. The crystalline overlayers are characterised by a sharp Fermi edge, while the approximant and decagonal quasicrystalline surfaces also have a lowered density of states.