In situ formation of a new Al-Pd-Mn-Si quasicrystalline phase on the pentagonal surface of the Al-Pd-Mn quasicrystal

Abstract
Growth of thin Si films deposited on the 5-fold symmetry surface of the icosahedral Al-Pd-Mn quasicrystal is monitored by low-energy electron diffraction, secondary-electron imaging, and Auger electron spectroscopy. We observe that below a sample temperature of 370 K, Si grows in an amorphous structure. Above 370 K, a new Al-Pd-Mn-Si quasicrystalline phase, which exhibits the same icosahedral symmetry as the substrate, is formed at the surface by substitutionally replacing Al by absorbed Si.