Spin–orbit splitting in the Si(335)–Au surface

Using density functional theory it is shown that spin–orbit coupling is crucial to understand and properly describe the electronic band structure of the Si(335)–Au surface. The spin–orbit splitting is responsible for the doublet of one-dimensional surface bands observed in photoemission. This suggests that the electronic bands of different gold-induced vicinal Si surfaces have similar character and are governed by the spin–orbit interaction.