Electronic Structure of Fe+X Alloys (X = Si, Ge, Co)

Abstract

The electronic structure of Fe–Ge, Fe–Si, and Fe–Co alloys has been investigated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. In Fe–Ge alloys with less than 10 at.% Ge, the Fe–Ge bond is mainly formed by the Fe 4sp- and Ge 4p-electrons. The results obtained for this system are identical to those for the Fe–Si system. The form of the valence band reflects the density distribution of both iron d-electronic states the and p-electronic states of the second component, having more extended density distribution of valence electrons. In FeCo alloys, strong spatial localization of d-electron density takes place in the vicinity of the corresponding atoms, which is stronger on the iron atoms compared to pure iron; the valence band has a two-band structure reflecting the density distribution of the d-states of each component. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy data are in good agreement with kinetic data for the alloys.