Pt-induced nanowires on Ge(001): a DFT study

TL;DR

This study uses density functional theory to investigate the atomic structures and formation mechanisms of Pt-induced nanowires on Ge(001), revealing that they consist of germanium dimers in specific surface troughs.

Contribution

It provides a detailed theoretical analysis of nanowire structures and formation processes on Pt-Ge(001), identifying the role of Pt density and specific dimer arrangements.

Findings

Nanowires are germanium dimers in troughs lined by Pt-Ge dimers.

Formation involves increasing Pt density in the top layers.

Simulated STM images match experimental observations.

Abstract

We study formation of the nanowires formed after deposition of Pt on a Ge(001) surface. The nanowires form spontaneously after high temperature annealing. They are thermodynamically stable, only one atom wide and up to a few hundred atoms long. Ab initio density functional theory calculations are performed to identify possible structures of the Pt-Ge (001) surface with nanowires on top. A large number of structures is studied. With nanowires that are formed out of Pt or Ge dimers or mixed Pt-Ge dimers. By comparing simulated scanning tunneling microscopy images with experimental ones we model the formation of the nanowires and identify the geometries of the different phases in the formation process. We find that the formation of nanowires on a Pt-Ge(001) surface is a complex process based on increasing the Pt density in the top layers of the Ge(001) surface. Most remarkably we find the nanowires to consist of germanium dimers placed in troughs lined by mixed Pt-Ge dimer rows.