First-principles calculations of hot-electron lifetimes in metals

First-principles calculations' of the inelastic lifetime of low-energy elec trons in Al, Mg, Be, and Cu are reported. Quasiparticle damping rates are e valuated from the: knowledge of the electron self-energy, which we compute within the GW approximation of many-body theory. Inelastic lifetimes are th en obtained along various directions of the electron wave vector, with full inclusion of the band structure of the solid. Average lifetimes are also r eported, as a function of the electron energy. In Al and Mg, splitting of t he band structure over the Fermi level yields electron lifetimes that are s maller than those of electrons in a free-electron gas. Larger lifetimes are found in Be, as a result of the characteristic dip that this material pres ents in the density of states near the Fermi level. In Cu, a major contribu tion from d electrons participating in the screening of electron-electron i nteractions yields electron Lifetimes that are well above those of electron s in a free-electron gas with the electron density equal to that of valence (4s(1)) electrons.