They will study the structural, thermodynamic, kinetic and electronic properties of surfaces using low-energy diffraction and related techniques. The general problems addressed include the physics of surface reconstruction, surface phase transformations and kinetics, metal/surface interfaces, and the interactions between adsorbed atoms. They will emphasize two new experimental techniques which should contribute to the understanding of the atomic arrangement of many reconstructed surfaces: the ability to study surfaces with an externally applied, uniform and variable strain and the ability to use collimated beams of alkali metal atoms to study the equilibrium adsorption of alkalis on semiconductor and metal surfaces.
