Theory of Surface Plasmon Excitation in Low-Energy Electron Diffraction and in Photoemission

Abstract

A theory of inelastic scattering of electrons by surface plasma oscillation is presented for low-energy electron diffraction and photoemission. The calculations give results which lend quantitative support to the interpretations of some prominent inelastic effects as due to surface plasmon excitation in recent experiments by Lander and Morrison in low-energy electron diffraction and by Smith and Spicer in photoemission.