Local measurement of the Eliashberg function of Pb islands: enhancement of electron-phonon coupling by quantum well states

Inelastic tunneling spectroscopy of Pb islands on Cu(111) obtained by scanning tunneling microscopy below 1 K provides a direct access to the local Eliashberg function of the islands with high energy resolution. The Eliashberg function describes the electron-phonon interaction causing conventional s...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Physical review letters 2015-01, Vol.114 (4), p.047002-047002, Article 047002
Main Authors: Schackert, Michael, Märkl, Tobias, Jandke, Jasmin, Hölzer, Martin, Ostanin, Sergey, Gross, Eberhard K U, Ernst, Arthur, Wulfhekel, Wulf
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Copper - chemistry
Electron-phonon interactions
Electrons
Fermi surfaces
Islands
Joining
Lead - chemistry
Mathematical analysis
Microscopy, Scanning Tunneling - methods
Models, Theoretical
Nanostructure
Phonons
Quantum Theory
Quantum wells
Superconductivity
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Summary:Inelastic tunneling spectroscopy of Pb islands on Cu(111) obtained by scanning tunneling microscopy below 1 K provides a direct access to the local Eliashberg function of the islands with high energy resolution. The Eliashberg function describes the electron-phonon interaction causing conventional superconductivity. The measured Eliashberg function strongly depends on the local thickness of the Pb nanostructures and shows a sharp maximum when quantum well states of the Pb islands come close to the Fermi energy. Ab initio calculations reveal that this is related to enhanced electron-phonon coupling at these thicknesses.
ISSN:0031-9007
1079-7114
DOI:10.1103/physrevlett.114.047002