Superlattices of Bi2Se3/In2Se3: Growth Characteristics and Structural Properties

TL;DR

This paper reports on the growth and structural analysis of Bi2Se3/In2Se3 superlattices grown on Si(111), highlighting their uniform layers and sharp interfaces, which are promising for studying quantum effects in topological insulators.

Contribution

It demonstrates the successful growth of high-quality Bi2Se3/In2Se3 superlattices with sharp interfaces and uniform layers using molecular-beam epitaxy.

Findings

Layers are very uniform and hetero-interfaces are sharp

Bi2Se3 and In2Se3 are chemically compatible

Potential for exploring quantum size effects in topological insulators

Abstract

Superlattices (SLs) consisted of alternating Bi2Se3 and In2Se3 layers are grown on Si(111) by molecular-beam epitaxy. Bi2Se3, a three-dimensional topological insulator (TI), showed good chemical and structural compatibility with In2Se3, a normal band insulator with large energy bandgap. The individual layers in the SLs are very uniform and the hetero-interfaces are sharp. Therefore, such SL structures are potential candidates for explorations of the quantum size effects of TIs.