Thick atomic layers of maximum density as bulk terminations of quasicrystals

TL;DR

This paper extends Bravais' rule to quasicrystals, proposing that thick atomic layers can serve as stable bulk terminations, which explains the terrace-like surface structures observed.

Contribution

It introduces a generalized rule for quasicrystal surface terminations, considering layers of atomic planes instead of single planes, enhancing understanding of quasicrystal surfaces.

Findings

Thick atomic layers can act as stable surface terminations.

The extended rule explains terrace-like surface features.

Surface structures are consistent with the layered termination model.

Abstract

The clean surfaces of quasicrystals, orthogonal to the directions of the main symmetry axes, have a terrace-like appearance. We extend the Bravais' rule for crystals to quasicrystals, allowing that instead of a single atomic plane a layer of atomic planes may form a bulk termination.