29 research outputs found
Continuous and correlated nucleation during nonstandard island growth at Ag/Si(111)-7x7 heteroepitaxy
We present a combined experimental and theoretical study of submonolayer
heteroepitaxial growth of Ag on Si(111)-7x7 at temperatures from 420 K to 550 K
when Ag atoms can easily diffuse on the surface and the reconstruction 7x7
remains stable. STM measurements for coverages from 0.05 ML to 0.6 ML show that
there is an excess of smallest islands (each of them fills up just one
half-unit cell - HUC) in all stages of growth. Formation of 2D wetting layer
proceeds by continuous nucleation of the smallest islands in the proximity of
larger 2D islands (extended over several HUCs) and following coalescence with
them. Such a growth scenario is verified by kinetic Monte Carlo simulation
which uses a coarse-grained model based on a limited capacity of HUC and a
mechanism which increases nucleation probability in a neighbourhood of already
saturated HUCs (correlated nucleation). The model provides a good fit for
experimental dependences of the relative number of Ag-occupied HUCs and the
preference in occupation of faulted HUCs on temperature and amount of deposited
Ag. Parameters obtained for the hopping of Ag adatoms between HUCs agree with
those reported earlier for initial stages of growth. The model provides two new
parameters - maximum number of Ag atoms inside HUC, and on HUC boundary.Comment: LaTeX2e, BibTeX, 9 pages, 7 images, accepted to Phys. Rev.
Magic Islands and Barriers to Attachment: A Si/Si(111)7x7 Growth Model
Surface reconstructions can drastically modify growth kinetics during initial
stages of epitaxial growth as well as during the process of surface
equilibration after termination of growth. We investigate the effect of
activation barriers hindering attachment of material to existing islands on the
density and size distribution of islands in a model of homoepitaxial growth on
Si(111)7x7 reconstructed surface. An unusual distribution of island sizes
peaked around "magic" sizes and a steep dependence of the island density on the
growth rate are observed. "Magic" islands (of a different shape as compared to
those obtained during growth) are observed also during surface equilibration.Comment: 4 pages including 5 figures, REVTeX, submitted to Physical Review
Quantum states and linear response in dc and electromagnetic fields for charge current and spin polarization of electrons at Bi/Si interface with giant spin-orbit coupling
An expansion of the nearly free-electron model constructed by Frantzeskakis,
Pons and Grioni [Phys. Rev. B {\bf 82}, 085440 (2010)] describing quantum
states at Bi/Si(111) interface with giant spin-orbit coupling is developed and
applied for the band structure and spin polarization calculation, as well as
for the linear response analysis for charge current and induced spin caused by
dc field and by electromagnetic radiation. It is found that the large
spin-orbit coupling in this system may allow resolving the spin-dependent
properties even at room temperature and at realistic collision rate. The
geometry of the atomic lattice combined with spin-orbit coupling leads to an
anisotropic response both for current and spin components related to the
orientation of the external field. The in-plane dc electric field produces only
the in-plane components of spin in the sample while both the in-plane and
out-of-plane spin components can be excited by normally propagating
electromagnetic wave with different polarizations.Comment: 10 pages, 9 figure
Effects of early visual and complex stimulation on learning, brain biochemistry, and electrophysiology
Cobalt Oxide-Supported Pt Electrocatalysts: Intimate Correlation between Particle Size, Electronic Metal–Support Interaction and Stability
Oxide supports can modify and stabilize platinum nanoparticles (NPs) in electrocatalytic materials. We studied related phenomena on model systems consisting of Pt NPs on atomically defined Co3O4(111) thin films. Chemical states and dissolution behavior of model catalysts were investigated as a function of the particle size and the electrochemical potential by ex situ emersion synchrotron radiation photoelectron spectroscopy and by online inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Electronic metal–support interaction (EMSI) yields partially oxidized Ptδ+ species at the metal/support interface of metallic nanometer-sized Pt NPs. In contrast, subnanometer particles form Ptδ+ aggregates that are exclusively accompanied by subsurface Pt4+ species. Dissolution of Cox+ ions is strongly coupled to the presence of Ptδ+ and the reduction of subsurface Pt4+ species. Our findings suggest that EMSI directly affects the integrity of oxide-based electrocatalysts and may be employed to stabilize Pt NPs against sintering and dissolution