Scanning tunneling microscopy of Bi$_2$Te$_3$ films prepared by pulsed laser deposition: from nanocrystalline structures to van der Waals epitaxy

N. I. Fedotov; A. A. Maizlakh; V. V. Pavlovskiy; G. V. Rybalchenko; S. V. Zaitsev-Zotov

doi:10.1016/j.surfin.2022.102015

paper

Scanning tunneling microscopy of Bi $_{2}$ Te $_{3}$ films prepared by pulsed laser deposition: from nanocrystalline structures to van der Waals epitaxy

arXiv:2203.06734 · doi:10.1016/j.surfin.2022.102015

Abstract

Bi $_{2}$ Te $_{3}$ is a material with high efficiency of thermoelectric energy conversion. Recently, it was also recognized as a topological insulator, and is often used as the basis for creation of other types of topological matter. Pulsed laser deposition (PLD) is widely considered as a simple method for growing of multicomponent films, but not as a tool for van der Waals epitaxy. We demonstrate here that the van der Waals epitaxy of Bi $_{2}$ Te $_{3}$ is indeed impossible in vacuum PLD, but is possible in the presence of a background gas, which is confirmed by the results of scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy studies. Results of {\it ab initio} calculations reproduce tunneling spectra of the first three terraces of epitaxial films of Bi $_{2}$ Te $_{3}$ . In addition, an unusual hexagonal superstructure resembling a charge-density wave is observed in overheated films.

arXiv comment10 pages, 10 figures, to be published in Surfaces and Interfaces

Scanning tunneling microscopy of Bi2​Te3​ films prepared by pulsed laser deposition: from nanocrystalline structures to van der Waals epitaxy

Abstract

References in corpus (5)

Scanning tunneling microscopy of Bi $_{2}$ Te $_{3}$ films prepared by pulsed laser deposition: from nanocrystalline structures to van der Waals epitaxy