Local work function and induced screening effects at stepped Pd surfaces

Calculations based on embedding are used to study the electronic structure and local surface properties of stepped Pd surfaces with and without the presence of applied electric fields. The smoothing of the spatial electronic structure at the step site-known as the Smoluchowski effect-influences surface properties near the step. As a result, the effective potential differs between step and terrace sites, giving rise to a variation in the local work function. In the presence of applied electric fields, edge effects at the step site give rise to a concentration of screening charge and enhance fields both perpendicular and parallel to the surface.