Tip-induced passivation of dangling bonds on hydrogenated Si(100)-2 x 1

摘要

Using combined low temperature scanning tunneling microscopy and atomic force microscopy (AFM), we demonstrate hydrogen passivation of individual, selected dangling bonds (DBs) on a hydrogen-passivated Si(100)-2 x 1 surface (H-Si) by atom manipulation. This method allows erasing of DBs and thus provides a promising scheme for error-correction in hydrogen lithography. Both Si-terminated tips (Si tips) for hydrogen desorption and H-terminated tips (H tips) for hydrogen passivation are created by deliberate contact to the H-Si surface and are assigned by their characteristic contrast in AFM. DB passivation is achieved by transferring the H atom that is at the apex of an H tip to the DB, reestablishing a locally defect-free H-Si surface.