Electron–phonon coupling in the surface electronic states on Pd(111)

Abstract

We present an ab initio study of the electron–phonon interaction in the surface electronic states on Pd(111). The calculations based on density-functional theory were carried out using a linear response approach and a mixed-basis pseudopotential method. We find that the electron–phonon coupling on Pd(111) both in the surface electronic states and at the Fermi energy is largely determined by bulk electronic states and bulk phonon modes. It is shown that the strength of the electron–phonon interaction and its variation with electron energy and momentum depend first of all on the particular surface energy band. However, the directional anisotropy in the electron–phonon coupling is weak.