Epitaxial fabrication of AgTe monolayer on Ag(111) and the sequential growth of Te film

TL;DR

This study demonstrates the epitaxial growth of a monolayer AgTe on Ag(111), revealing defect structures and domain boundaries, and explores its potential as a template for further Te film growth, advancing 2D material fabrication.

Contribution

It presents a systematic method for fabricating AgTe monolayer on Ag(111) and investigates its defect structures and growth mechanisms, providing insights for 2D material synthesis.

Findings

Identification of two types of AgTe domains with twin boundaries

Observation of Te chains on top of the Te film

AgTe monolayer can serve as a template for subsequent Te growth

Abstract

Transition-metal chalcogenides (TMCs) materials have attracted increasing interest both for fundamental research and industrial applications. Among all these materials, two-dimensional (2D) compounds with honeycomb-like structure possess exotic electronic structures. Here, we report a systematic study of TMC monolayer AgTe fabricated by direct depositing Te on the surface of Ag(111) and annealing. Few intrinsic defects are observed and studied by scanning tunneling microscopy, indicating that there are two kinds of AgTe domains and they can form gliding twin-boundary. Then, the monolayer AgTe can serve as the template for the following growth of Te film. Meanwhile, some Te atoms are observed in the form of chains on the top of the bottom Te film. Our findings in this work might provide insightful guide for the epitaxial growth of 2D materials for study of novel physical properties and for future quantum devices.