Comparative growth study of ultrathin Bi films on clean and oxygen-reconstructed Nb(110)

Robin Boshuis, Artem Odobesko, Felix Friedrich, Johannes Jung, and Matthias Bode
Phys. Rev. Materials 5, 054801 – Published 4 May 2021
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Abstract

We present a detailed study of the growth of Bi films on superconducting Nb(110) substrates in dependence on the Bi coverages and the Nb surface quality. We find that Bi grows in a (110) orientation at low coverage equivalent to about five pseudomorphic monolayers (MLps) on clean Nb(110), but then undergoes a structural transition to Bi(111) below about 8 MLps. Comparison with two oxygen-reconstructed Nb(110) surfaces, the NbOx phases I and II, reveals that the film thickness at which the (110)-to-(111) transition takes place depends on the surface quality. Whereas it is observed at lower coverage for the NbOx phase I, our results indicate that Bi(110) remains stable on NbOx phase II up to the largest film thickness studied here, i.e., 18 ML. The quality and smoothness of the thin Bi films considerably depends on the cleanliness of the Nb substrate, revealing the most flat and defect-free Bi films grown on the oxygen-free clean Nb(110) surface.

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  • Received 17 December 2020
  • Revised 8 March 2021
  • Accepted 15 April 2021

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevMaterials.5.054801

©2021 American Physical Society

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Condensed Matter, Materials & Applied Physics

Authors & Affiliations

Robin Boshuis1,*, Artem Odobesko1, Felix Friedrich1, Johannes Jung1, and Matthias Bode1,2

  • 1Physikalisches Institut, Experimentelle Physik II, Universität Würzburg and Würzburg-Dresden Cluster of Excellence ct.qmat, Am Hubland, 97074 Würzburg, Germany
  • 2Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen-Center for Complex Material Systems (RCCM), Universität Würzburg, Am Hubland, 97074 Würzburg, Germany

  • *robin.boshuis@physik.uni-wuerzburg.de

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Issue

Vol. 5, Iss. 5 — May 2021

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