Optical Spectra of Core Electrons in Metals with an Incomplete Shell. I. Analytic Features

Abstract

Analytic features of the spectra due to excitation of a core electron in metal with an incomplete shell are studied with a simple model. The incomplete shell (denoted by d state, representatively) is treated as a nondegenerate localized state interacting with conduction band through the s – d mixing. It is assumed that in the initial state of the absorption the unoccupied d level is well above the Fermi energy ε F while in the final states the d level of the excited atom is lowered down to ε d due to the core hole left behind. When ε d > ε F , the singular absorption edge appears at \(\tilde{\varepsilon}_{\text{F}}\) as expected, with an antiresonance around \(\tilde{\varepsilon}_{d}\). When ε d < ε F , the singular absorption edge appears at \(\tilde{\varepsilon}_{d}\), the Fermi level threshold being blurred out by the life time effect of the d hole. Emission spectra are also calculated. The results are compared qualitatively with experimental data.