Energy of step formation on metal surfaces from the stabilized-jellium model

We describe stepped metal surfaces by the stabilized-jellium model, and calculate the step formation energy within the local density approximation of the density-functional theory. Using fourth-order gradient expansion for the kinetic energy, we determine the electron density variationally from a parameterized trial density. We compare our numerical results for a monatomic step on the Al(1 1 1) surface with other theoretical calculations and estimates.