Simulated scanning tunneling microscopy images of few-layer-phosphorus capped by graphene and hexagonal boron nitride monolayers

Abstract

Elemental phosphorous is believed to have several stable allotropes that are energetically nearly degenerate, but chemically reactive. To prevent chemical degradation under ambient conditions, these structures may be capped by monolayers of hexagonal boron nitride ({\em h}-BN) or graphene. We perform {\em ab initio} density functional calculations to simulate scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) images of different layered allotropes of phosphorus and study the effect of capping layers on these images. We find that protective monolayers of insulating {\em h}-BN allow to distinguish between the different structural phases of phosphorus underneath, even though the images are filtered through only nitrogen atoms that appear transparent. No such distinction is possible for phosphorus films capped by semimetallic graphene that masks the underlying structure. Our results suggest that the real-space imaging capability of STM is not hindered by selected capping layers that protect phosphorus surfaces.

Published version, replaces previous one

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Cited by in corpus (5)

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• Strain and the optoelectronic properties of non-planar phosphorene monolayers
• From atomic layer to the bulk: low-temperature atomistic structure, ferroelectric and electronic properties of SnTe films
• Van der Waals Heterostructures Based on Allotropes of Phosphorene and MoSe2
• The impact of hexagonal boron nitride encapsulation on the structural and vibrational properties of few layer black phosphorus