Ethereal “interstitials” on the (110) surface of InSb

Scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) images of the (110) surface of InSb reveal apparent surface interstitial Sb atoms when the sample bias voltage is small and negative, corresponding to tunneling of electrons from the top of the valence band of InSb. These surface “interstitials” disappear at other...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Solid state communications 1993-04, Vol.86 (1), p.33-37
Main Authors: Liang, Yong, Tsai, Min-Hsiung, Packard, Willian E., Dow, John D., Blackstead, Howard A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Condensed matter: electronic structure, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties
Electronic structure and electrical properties of surfaces, interfaces, thin films and low-dimensional structures
Exact sciences and technology
Physics
Surface and interface electron states
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Summary:Scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) images of the (110) surface of InSb reveal apparent surface interstitial Sb atoms when the sample bias voltage is small and negative, corresponding to tunneling of electrons from the top of the valence band of InSb. These surface “interstitials” disappear at other bias voltages. The observations of these “ethereal interstitials” are explained in terms of below-surface, second-layer Sb atoms, that appear to lie above the surface due to the re-hybridized character of the surface Sb wavefunctions near the top of the valence band.
ISSN:0038-1098
1879-2766
DOI:10.1016/0038-1098(93)90243-G