Asymmetric peak broadening in photoemission of surface states as a consequence of lateral electron confinement

In addition to the inverse lifetime, the photoemission peak width of a surface state depends on the quality of the surface. For a stepped surface, in particular, there is an energy shift of the surface state owing to the confinement of electrons. A random distribution of steps causes an asymmetric peak broadening, which is examined as a function of the shift parameter, the inverse lifetime and the mean terrace width. The model is discussed for the Cu(111) sp-surface state for which an influence of steps on the peak shape is obtained particularly for mean terrace widths less than 100 Angstrom. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science B.V.