Investigation of the structure of a Ag/Pd/Ag(1 1 1) trilayer by means of electronic spectroscopies

The growth of the Ag/Pd/Ag system has been studied by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and low energy electron diffraction. No chemical reaction or interdiffusion was observed between the Pd and Ag layers. The growth of the Pd interlayer follows the Frank Van der Merwe mode but is not pseudomorphic on the Ag(1 1 1) substrate. The growth of the top Ag layer on the Pd interlayer is pseudomorphic and layer by layer but contains around 12% of voids.