title: Relating temperature dependence of atom scattering spectra to surface corrugation.
abstract: It is suggested that a measurement of the temperature dependence of the most probable intensity of energy-resolved atom-surface scattering spectra can reveal the strength of the surface corrugation. To support this conjecture, a classical mechanical theory of atom scattering from a corrugated surface, valid in the weak corrugation limit, is developed. The general result for the scattering probability is expressed in terms of spatial integrals over the impact parameter within a surface unit cell. For the case of a one-dimensional corrugation, approximate expressions for the scattering probability are obtained in terms of analytic closed form expressions. As an indicator of its relation to experimental measurements, calculations using a one-dimensional corrugation model are compared with data for Ar scattering from a molten Ga surface and an approximate value of the corrugation height parameter is extracted.
authors.affiliation: Physical Sciences Department, Greenville Technical College, Greenville, SC 29606, USA. Wayne.Hayes@gvltec.edu
authors.forename: W W
authors.initials: WW
authors.lastname: Hayes
authors.forename: J R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Manson