Analysis of surface structures through determination of their composition using STM: Si(100)4×3-In and Si(111)4×1-In reconstructions

Abstract

The advantages of scanning tunneling microscopy for the determination of the composition of the submonolayer metal/silicon interfaces has been demonstrated using Si(100)4\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}3-In and Si(111)4\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}1-In as sample reconstructions. It has been found that the Si(100)4\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}3-In unit cell is built of 7 In atoms and 6 Si atoms, while the Si(111)4\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}1-In unit cell contains 3 In atoms and 2 Si atoms in addition to the top Si(111) bilayer. The obtained quantitative information provides the ground for discussion of the plausible atomic arrangement of these reconstructions.