Thermoelectric power and electrical resistance of thin, quench-condensed Sb/Au bilayers - a study of an amorphous phase at the interface

Abstract

Our investigation of the electrical resistance and the thermoelectric power of thin Au films on top of amorphous Sb films as a function of increasing thickness of the Au film allows us to compare the data with those on amorphous Au x Sb 100−x films with increasing Au content. The comparison shows a substantial similarity of the low-temperature data as well as of the annealing behaviour. This gives additional support to the hypothesis of the formation of an amorphous phase at the interface in layered Sb/Au films. The thicknesses of those parts of the Sb film and the Au film which contribute to the formation of the amorphous interface are determined and agree well with data taken from photoelectron spectroscopy and resistance measurements during evaporation. The quantitative differences which exist in the concentration dependence of the electrical resistance and the thermoelectric power between the Sb/Au bilayers and the amorphous Au x Sb 100−x films are probably caused by the reduced geometry of the ultrathin interface.