Static and dynamic buckling of reconstructions at triple steps on Si(111) surfaces
- Institute of Semiconductor Physics, pr. Lavrentyeva 13, Novosibirsk 630090 (Russian Federation)
- Department of Physics and I3N, University of Aveiro, Campus Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro (Portugal)
- Department of Chemistry, University of Surrey, Guildford GU2 7XH (United Kingdom)
- School of Electrical, Electronic and Computer Engineering, Newcastle University, Newcastle Upon Tyne NE1 7RU (United Kingdom)
Triple steps on Si(111) surfaces are popular building blocks for bottom-up nanostructure assembly, conferring size uniformity and precise positioning of growing nanostructures. In this work, we employ the Si(7 7 10) regular stepped surface as model system to study the triple steps by scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and large-scale first-principles calculations. We find a surprising cohabitation of reconstruction elements at the step edge that either buckles statically or dynamically at room temperature. The driving force for the observed sequence of buckling patterns is traced back to Coulomb interactions involving charged adatoms and rest-atoms lying on a mini-terrace. These results reconcile the Si(111) triple step model with the experimental STM data.
- OSTI ID:
- 22310648
- Journal Information:
- Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 105, Issue 17; Other Information: (c) 2014 AIP Publishing LLC; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0003-6951
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Scanning tunneling microscopy/scanning tunneling spectroscopy observation of step structures of Si(001) and (111) surfaces
STM and LEED studies of atomically ordered terraced Si(557) surfaces