Growth and band alignment of Bi2Se3 topological insulator on H-terminated Si(111) van der Waals surface

TL;DR

This study demonstrates the successful van der Waals epitaxy of Bi2Se3 on hydrogen-terminated Si(111) surfaces, analyzing the electronic properties and Schottky barrier, which advances the fabrication of topological insulator heterojunctions.

Contribution

It reports the first growth of Bi2Se3 on H-terminated Si(111) via physical vapor deposition and characterizes its electronic interface properties.

Findings

Schottky barrier height of 0.31 eV at the heterojunction

Successful epitaxial growth of Bi2Se3 on H:Si

Potential for cost-effective heterojunction fabrication

Abstract

The van der Waals epitaxy of single crystalline Bi2Se3 film was achieved on hydrogen passivated Si(111) (H:Si) substrate by physical vapor deposition. Valence band structures of Bi2Se3/H:Si heterojunction were investigated by X-ray Photoemission Spectroscopy and Ultraviolet Photoemission Spectroscopy. The measured Schottky barrier height at the Bi2Se3-H:Si interface was 0.31 eV. The findings pave the way for economically preparing heterojunctions and multilayers of layered compound families of topological insulators.