Time resolved valence band photoelectron spectroscopy of liquid palladium and molybdenum

Photoelectron spectroscopy measurements on liquid transition metals are not feasible by conventional steady state experiments because of the elevated vapor pressures of these metals at the melting point. However, dynamic experiments with surface melting induced by pulsed laser irradiation combined with time resolved photoelectron spectroscopy make these experiments possible for the first time. Valence band spectra of Pd and Mo have been obtained by this method in both the high temperature solid phase and the liquid phase under identical experimental conditions. Both the elements reveal distinct changes in the valence band spectra on melting. The shapes of the 4d bands of the two metals in the liquid phase are in good agreement with the calculated spectra based on the ab initio density of states (DOS) calculations.