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Quantitative determination of atomic buckling of silicene by atomic force microscopy.


ABSTRACT: The atomic buckling in 2D "Xenes" (such as silicene) fosters a plethora of exotic electronic properties such as a quantum spin Hall effect and could be engineered by external strain. Quantifying the buckling magnitude with subangstrom precision is, however, challenging, since epitaxially grown 2D layers exhibit complex restructurings coexisting on the surface. Here, we characterize using low-temperature (5 K) atomic force microscopy (AFM) with CO-terminated tips assisted by density functional theory (DFT) the structure and local symmetry of each prototypical silicene phase on Ag(111) as well as extended defects. Using force spectroscopy, we directly quantify the atomic buckling of these phases within 0.1-Å precision, obtaining corrugations in the 0.8- to 1.1-Å range. The derived band structures further confirm the absence of Dirac cones in any of the silicene phases due to the strong Ag-Si hybridization. Our method paves the way for future atomic-scale analysis of the interplay between structural and electronic properties in other emerging 2D Xenes.

SUBMITTER: Pawlak R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6955330 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Quantitative determination of atomic buckling of silicene by atomic force microscopy.

Pawlak Rémy R   Drechsel Carl C   D'Astolfo Philipp P   Kisiel Marcin M   Meyer Ernst E   Cerda Jorge Iribas JI  

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 20191223 1


The atomic buckling in 2D "Xenes" (such as silicene) fosters a plethora of exotic electronic properties such as a quantum spin Hall effect and could be engineered by external strain. Quantifying the buckling magnitude with subangstrom precision is, however, challenging, since epitaxially grown 2D layers exhibit complex restructurings coexisting on the surface. Here, we characterize using low-temperature (5 K) atomic force microscopy (AFM) with CO-terminated tips assisted by density functional th  ...[more]

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