A Theoretical Study of the One-Phonon Inelastic Scattering of Atoms from the (001) Surface of LiF

Abstract

The vibrational structure associated with the one-phonon inelastic scattering of light particles from the (001) surface of LiF are studied and expressed in terms of surface projected phonon densities. The surface vibrations and the related densities for the semi-infinite ionic lattice are calculated in detail by means of the Green function method, in the framework of the breathing shell model. The inelastic reflection coefficient due to the creation of a phonon of given frequency and surface wave-vector is calculated within a semiclassical description of the particle motion, for Lennard-Jones interaction potentials. The nature and the amount of information on the surface dynamics obtainable from the velocity analysis of the scattered beam are discussed.