Electronic, optical, and surface properties of PtSi thin films

We report a theoretical and experimental study of thin Pt silicide films. Employing density-functional theory, we investigate the electronic structure, bonding, and optical properties of PtSi and Pt₂Si. Additionally, we calculate surface energies for various orientations and terminations of PtSi surfaces. Our results suggest that thermodynamics may play a role in the silicide formation. The complex dielectric function determined by spectroscopic ellipsometry exhibits non-Drude behavior and shows peaks, which are identified with interband transitions in the $5d$ manifold of platinum and compared with theory.