FULLY 3-DIMENSIONAL SCATTERING CALCULATIONS OF STANDING ELECTRON WAVES IN QUANTUM NANOSTRUCTURES - THE IMPORTANCE OF QUASI-PARTICLE INTERACTIONS

We describe full multiple-scattering calculations of surface-state ele ctrons in quantum nanostructures built from a small number of adatoms. These are structures that have been assembled and studied in recent c ryogenic STM experiments. Our calculations confirm the nature of elect ron confinement deduced from a previous continuum model. We highlight the role of the intrinsic electron lifetime in determining spectral fe atures, arguing that atomic corrals could serve as useful ''nanoscale quantum laboratories'' of many-body processes at surfaces. Results for structures assembled from several different atomic species show remar kable similarities, a specific prediction of our theory.