Frantzeskakis, EmmanouilPons, StephaneGrioni, Marco2011-12-162011-12-162011-12-16201010.1103/PhysRevB.82.085440https://infoscience.epfl.ch/handle/20.500.14299/75231WOS:000281162500005The Bi/Si(111) (root 3 x root 3)R30 degrees trimer phase offers a prime example of a giant spin-orbit splitting of the electronic states at the interface with a semiconducting substrate. We have performed a detailed angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) study to clarify the complex topology of the hybrid interface bands. The analysis of the ARPES data, guided by a model tight-binding calculation, reveals a previously unexplored mechanism at the origin of the giant spin-orbit splitting, which relies primarily on the underlying band structure. We anticipate that other similar interfaces characterized by trimer structures could also exhibit a large effect.Ultraviolet Photoelectron-SpectroscopySurface-StatesElectronic-StructureAu(111)Modeltext::journal::journal article::research article