Gold Interlayer Promotes Superconductivity in Single and Double Atomic Pb Layers on Si(100).

Introducing an atomic Au monolayer between a Pb film and a Si(100) substrate allows us to fabricate Pb films with single- and double-atom thicknesses. The Pb films have a 2D square-lattice structure with the 1D atomic chains of Pb adatoms on their top, forming Si(100)1 × 7-(Pb, Au) and Si(100)5 × 1-(Pb, Au) superstructures for single and double atomic Pb layers, respectively. Their common characteristic feature is the occurrence of bundles of quasi-1D metallic bands.

Solving a Long-Standing Problem Regarding Atomic Structure of Si(100)2×3-Ag.

The atomic structure of the Si(100)2×3-Ag reconstruction has remained unknown for more than 25 years since its first observation with scanning tunneling microscopy, despite a relatively small unit cell and seeming abundance of the available experimental data. We propose a structural model of the Si(100)3×2-Ag reconstruction which comfortably fits all the principal experimental findings, including our own and those reported in the literature. The model incorporates 3 Si atoms and 4 Ag atoms per the 2 × 3 unit cell forming linear atomic chains along the 3-periodic direction.

The manipulation of C60 in molecular arrays with an STM tip in regimes below the decomposition threshold.

The ability of scanning tunneling microscopy to manipulate selected C(60) molecules within close packed C(60) arrays on a (Au,In)/Si(111) surface has been examined for mild conditions below the decomposition threshold. It has been found that knockout of the chosen C(60) molecule (i.e.

Self-assembly of conductive Cu nanowires on Si(111)'5 × 5 '-Cu surface.

Upon room-temperature deposition onto a Cu/Si(111)'5 × 5' surface in ultra-high vacuum, Cu atoms migrate over extended distances to become trapped at the step edges, where they form Cu nanowires (NWs). The formed NWs are 20-80 nm wide, 1-3 nm high and characterized by a resistivity of ∼8 µΩ cm. The surface conductance of the NW array is anisotropic, with the conductivity along the NWs being about three times greater than that in the perpendicular direction.