The Effect of Spin–Orbit Coupling on the Surface Dynamical Properties and Electron–Phonon Interaction of Tl(0001)

Abstract

We present an ab initio study of the effect of spin-orbit coupling on the dynamical properties of the Tl(0001) surface as well as on the electron-phonon interaction at the surface. The calculations based on density-functional theory were carried out using a linear response approach and a mixed-basis pseudopotential method. It is shown that the spin-orbit effects on the phonon spectrum and the electron-phonon interaction at the Fermi level of the surface are weak but conspire to a reduction in the electron-phonon coupling strength by 16%.