Local density of unoccupied states in ion-beam-mixed Pd-Ag alloys

X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) measurements have been used to probe the electronic structure of ion-beam-mixed (IBM) Pd-Ag thin films with bulk alloys being studied for comparison, Pd L(3) and Ag L(3) absorption edges for pure Pd, Ag, and Pd1-xAgx alloys are discussed. Structural information from both x-ray diffraction and the XAS fine structure oscillations are discussed. The observed decrease of the white-line feature strength, at the Pd L(3) edge, indicates that the local density of unoccupied Pd 4d states declines upon alleging with Ag in a manner similar to that observed in previous bulk studies. However, while the Pd d-hole count decreases monotonically for bulk alloys, in the IBM alloys it saturates at higher levels in the Ag-rich materials. This disparity is interpreted on the basis of a modified charge transfer due to structural differences in the IBM alloys. The Ag L(3) near-edge region is largely unchanged in these alloys, indicating that the charge transferred away from the Ag site is dominantly of non-d type. Our experimental results are discussed in the context of recent electronic structure calculations and of previous work on this alloy system.