We measure the quantized conductance in Au-Pd and Au-Ag alloy nanocontacts for a wide range of Pd and Ag concentrations, and study how the 1G 0 conductance of Au changes with alloying. In Au-Pd, the 1G 0 peak in a conductance histogram decreases in height with increasing Pd concentration, and disappears at around 80-at.% Pd. The 1G 0 peak shows no peak shift and forms no subpeaks upon Pd alloying. This result indicates that the 1G 0 conductance in Au-Pd nanocontacts is due to an all-Au atomic link connecting electrodes. Assuming a simple contact geometry, we calculate the formation probability of a Au link as a function of the Pd concentration, and find good agreement with the concentration dependence of the 1G 0 peak height. On the other hand, in Au-Ag, the 1G 0 peak can be observed for an entire range of Ag concentration, and its peak height changes as a linear compositional average of those of pure Au and Ag.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.