Evidence against a charge density wave on Bi(111)

The Bi(111) surface was studied by scanning tunneling microscopy (STM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and angle-resolved photoemission (ARPES) in order to verify the existence of a recently proposed surface charge density wave (CDW) [Ch. R. Ast and H. Höchst Phys. Rev. Lett. 90, 016403 (2003)]. The STM and TEM results to not support a CDW scenario at low temperatures. Furthermore, the quasiparticle interference pattern observed in STM confirms the spin-orbit split character of the surface states which prevents the formation of a CDW, even in the case of good nesting. The dispersion of the electronic states observed with ARPES agrees well with earlier findings. In particular, the Fermi contour of the electron pocket at the centre of the surface Brillouin zone is found to have a hexagonal shape. However, no gap opening or other signatures of a CDW phase transition can be found in the temperature-dependent data. PACS numbers: 71.45.Lr, 73.20.-r,79.60.-i,73.25.+i