Local determination of the amount of integration of an atom into a crystal surface

Collective vibrational modes of crystal lattices, called phonons, determine fundamental material properties, such as their thermal and electrical conductivities. Bulk phonon spectra are influenced by point defects. More recently, the importance of phonons on nanostructures has come into the focus of attention. Here we show a spatially resolved phonon spectra of point defects that reveal distinctly different signatures for a cavity alone and an impurity atom fully integrated into the surface as opposed to one placed into a cavity. The spectra are indicative for delocalized phonons and localized vibrations, respectively, as confirmed by theory.