Trivial band topology of ultra-thin rhombohedral Sb2Se3 grown on Bi2Se3.

Thin films of rhombohedral Sb2Se3 with thicknesses from 1 to 5 quintuple layers (QL) were grown on Bi2Se3/Si(1 1 1) substrate. The electronic band structure of the grown films and the Sb2Se3/Bi2Se3 interface were studied using angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy. It was found that while Sb2Se3 has an electronic band structure generally similar to that of Bi2Se3, there is no fingerprints of band inversion in it. Instead, the one-QL-thick Sb2Se3 films show direct band gap of about 80 meV. With growing film thickness, the Fermi level of the Sb2Se3 films gradually shifts by 200 meV for 5 QL-thick film revealing the band bending of the Sb2Se3/Bi2Se3 hetero-junction.

Atomic, electronic and transport properties of In-Au 2D compound on Si(1 0 0).

Two-dimensional (In, Au)/Si(1 0 0)c(2 [Formula: see text] 2) compound was synthesized and its atomic arrangement, electron band structure and low-temperature transport properties were characterized using scanning tunneling microscopy, angle-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy and four-point-probe resistivity measurements assisted with first-principles density-functional-theory calculations. The present results are compared to those obtained earlier for the parent (Tl, Au)/Si(1 0 0)c(2 [Formula: see text] 2) system.

Observation of the nesting and defect-driven 1D incommensurate charge density waves phase in the 2D system.

We report on the low-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy/spectroscopy (STM/STS) study of the (Bi, Na)/Si(1 1 1)[Formula: see text] reconstruction that is known to possess Fermi surface with apparently good nesting. We found that defects on this surface produce a one-dimensional-like pattern with the periodicity of 8.2 [Formula: see text] 0.4 [Formula: see text] that is incommensurate with the [Formula: see text] lattice period. The [Formula: see text] mapping analysis reveals an occurrence of the k-dependent branch associated with quasi-particle interference and the k-independent branch associated with the nesting vector connecting the parallel segments of the (Bi,Na)/Si(1 1 1)[Formula: see text] Fermi surface, the fingerprint of the charge-density-wave (CDW) phase. The STS data demonstrates that development of the CDW phase leads to reducing electron density of states at the Fermi level.

Two-Dimensional Superconductor with a Giant Rashba Effect: One-Atom-Layer Tl-Pb Compound on Si(111).

A one-atom-layer compound made of one monolayer of Tl and one-third monolayer of Pb on a Si(111) surface having √3×√3 periodicity was found to exhibit a giant Rashba-type spin splitting of metallic surface-state bands together with two-dimensional superconducting transport properties. Temperature-dependent angle-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy revealed an enhanced electron-phonon coupling for one of the spin-split bands. In situ micro-four-point-probe conductivity measurements with and without magnetic field demonstrated that the (Tl, Pb)/Si(111) system transformed into the superconducting state at 2.25 K, followed by the Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless mechanism. The 2D Tl-Pb compound on Si(111) is believed to be the prototypical object for prospective studies of intriguing properties of the superconducting 2D system with lifted spin degeneracy, bearing in mind that its composition, atomic and electron band structures, and spin texture are already well established.

Incommensurate superstructure in heavily doped fullerene layer on Bi/Si(111) surface.

Cs adsorption onto the C60-covered Si(111)-ß-√3×√3-Bi reconstruction has been studied by means of scanning tunneling microscopy and photoelectron spectroscopy. Unexpected increase in apparent size of every second C60 molecule has been detected, hereupon the close packed molecular array almost doubles its periodicity. The change affects only the fullerenes that are in direct contact with the metal-induced reconstruction and takes no place already in the second layer. Photoelectron studies have revealed that this incommensurate "2 × 2" superstructure of a heavily doped C60 monolayer remains in an insulating state regardless of doping level.

Effect of Na adsorption on the structural and electronic properties of Si(111)√3 × âˆš3-Au surface.

Adsorption of ∼0.1 ML of Na onto the Si(111)√3 × âˆš3-Au surface held at 300 °C has been found to induce pronounced changes in its structural and electronic properties. Domain wall networks, characteristic of the pristine surface, are removed completely, leading to the formation of a highly ordered homogeneous surface. The original atomic arrangement of the Si(111)√3 × âˆš3-Au is preserved and Na atoms occupy T4 adsorption sites at the centers of surface Si trimers. Upon Na adsorption, a pronounced metallic S1 surface-state band develops. It is characterized by a large spin splitting (momentum splitting at the Fermi level Δk∥ = 0.027 Å(-1) and consequent energy splitting ΔEF = 110 meV), large electron filling (on the order of 0.5 electrons per √3 × âˆš3 unit cell) and small effective electron mass of (0.028 ± 0.006)me. The natural consequence of the latter properties is a high surface conductivity of the Si(111)√3 × âˆš3-(Au, Na) surface.

Structural transformations in Pb/Si(111) phases induced by C60 adsorption.

Structural transformations at the Pb/Si(111) surface occurring upon C60 adsorption onto Pb/Si(111)1 × 1 phase at room temperature and Pb/Si(111)[Formula: see text] at low temperatures between 30 and 210 K, have been studied using scanning tunneling microscopy and low-energy electron diffraction observations. Typically, C60 fullerenes agglomerate into random molecular islands nucleated at the surface defects. C60 island formation is accompanied by expelling Pb atoms to the surrounding surface area where more dense Pb/Si(111) phases form. Productivity of C60-induced expelling of Pb atoms is controlled by surface defects and is suppressed dramatically when regular ('crystalline') C60 islands self-assemble at the defect-free Pb/Si(111) surface. When Pb atoms are ejected by the random C60 islands, extended structural transformations involving reordering of numerous Pb atoms are fully completed at the surface within the shortest possible time (a few dozen seconds) to reapproach and image the surface after C60 deposition. Estimations show that the observed transformations cannot be controlled by random walk diffusion of Pb adatoms, which implies a highly correlated motion of the Pb atom displacements within the layer.

Stepwise self-assembly of C60 mediated by atomic scale moiré magnifiers.

Self-assembly of atoms or molecules on a crystal surface is considered one of the most promising methods to create molecular devices. Here we report a stepwise self-assembly of C60 molecules into islands with unusual shapes and preferred sizes on a gold-indium-covered Si(111) surface. Specifically, 19-mer islands prefer a non-compact boomerang shape, whereas hexagonal 37-mer islands exhibit extraordinarily enhanced stability and abundance. The stepwise self-assembly is mediated by the moiré interference between an island with its underlying lattice, which essentially maps out the adsorption-energy landscape of a C60 on different positions of the surface with a lateral magnification factor and dictates the probability for the subsequent attachment of C60 to an island's periphery. Our discovery suggests a new method for exploiting the moiré interference to dynamically assist the self-assembly of particles and provides an unexplored tactic of engineering atomic scale moiré magnifiers to facilitate the growth of monodispersed mesoscopic structures.