Growth and characterization of Ag layers on Mo(110) using LEED, XPS and ARPES

Abstract Epitaxial ultra-thin film systems present unique properties distinct from their bulk counterparts, influenced by strain, morphology, defects, and substrate conditions. The Ag/Mo(110) system, where silver adopts a face-centred cubic (fcc) structure on a body-centred cubic (bcc) substrate, is an interesting system for studying as it forms twin Ag(111) planes with their lattice parameters varying depending on the thickness of the silver layer. This study investigates the properties of a 30 monolayer silver film epitaxially grown on Mo(110) surface at room temperature utilizing low energy electron diffraction, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES). The presence of Shockley surface state in the ARPES data indicates that the grown Ag(111) planes are of high quality in our deposition condition. We also compare the electronic structure with single crystal Ag(111) substrate, highlighting its potential for tunable substrate applications.