The surface spin states for bismuth thin films were investigated using an sp3 tight-binding model. The model explains the experimental observations using angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy, including the Fermi surface, the band structure with Rashba spin splitting, and the quantum confinement in the energy band gap of the surface states. A large out-of-plane spin component also appears. The surface states penetrate inside the film to within approximately a few bilayers near the Brillouin-zone center, whereas they reach the center of the film near the Brillouin-zone boundary.
@article{arxiv.1507.06783,
title = {Tight-binding theory of surface spin states on bismuth thin films},
author = {Kazuo Saito and Hirokatsu Sawahata and Takashi Komine and Tomosuke Aono},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1507.06783},
year = {2016}
}