Valence-transition-induced 5×5 surface reconstruction of Sm(0001)

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Abstract
Single-crystal SM(0001) surfaces have been grown epitaxially on Mo(110). At low temperatures LEED shows a 5×5 surface reconstruction. This new type of valence-transition-induced reconstruction corresponds to a 25% expansion of the interatomic distances in the topmost hexagonal surface layer. At room temperature the 5×5 LEED pattern disappears due to a disordering of the surface. This suggests a very low melting temperature for the surface which may have implications for the understanding of the anomalous melting temperature of Sm metal.