Anomalous flipping motions of buckled dimers on the Si(001) surface at 5 K

Abstract

We report on dynamical flipping of buckled dimers on the Si(001) surface at 5 K. A $c(4\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}2)$ ordering of the buckled dimers has been observed to fluctuate at 5 K by using low-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). The flip-flop motion of the buckled dimers on the Si(001) surface exhibits symmetrical appearance in the STM images, independent of sample bias voltages and tunneling current.