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Phys. Rev. B 54 (1996) pp. 17367-17370
Fully three-dimensional scattering calculations of standing electron waves in quantum nanostructures: the importance of quasiparticle interactions.
School of Physics, University of Bath, BA2 7AY, United Kingdom
Abstract
We describe full multiple scattering calculations of surface state
electrons in quantum nanostructures built from of a small number of adatoms.
These are structures which have been assembled and studied in recent
cryogenic STM experiments. Our calculations confirm the nature of electron
confinement deduced from a previous continuum model. We highlight the
role of the intrinsic electron lifetime in determining spectral
features, arguing that atomic corrals could serve as useful ``nanoscale
quantum laboratories'' of many-body processes at surfaces. Results for
structures assembled from several different atomic species show
remarkable similarities, a specific prediction of our theory.