Photon emission spectroscopy of single oxide-supported Ag-Au alloy clusters

The alloying of Ag and Au has been investigated on the level of individual clusters by analyzing the light emission excited by electron injection from an STM tip. Different Ag-Au alloy and shell-core clusters have been prepared at room temperature on a thin Al2O3 film on NiAl(110) by simultaneous and successive deposition of both noble metals. For simultaneous deposition, one Mie-plasmon resonance has been detected with a wavelength position shifting from the pure Au to the Ag value with increasing Ag content. The results are in agreement with calculations based on Mie theory indicating a complete mixing of both materials. For successive deposition, two Mie resonances have been observed, attributed to plasmon excitations in the shell and core of the clusters. Comparing these results to model calculations, a considerable intermixing of the core and shell materials is concluded, which is especially strong in Au shell-Ag core clusters.