In situ surface evolution dynamics of external-electric-field-triggered structural oscillation on Au(111)

Abstract

Surface nanostructures serve as an essential role in determining intrinsic physical features and device performance in solid materials. Here, this work systematically investigates the surface dynamical evolution at the nanoscale on Au(111) induced by a “tip-to-surface” external electric field through a scanning tunneling microscope (STM). The Au(111) steps exhibit a “compact to fractal” reconstruction under a relatively high electric field, in which the transition is strengthened with increasing the applied electric field. Inversely, a “fractal to compact” morphological transition enables to be self-triggered at Au(111) surface steps upon a normal STM imaging electric field (very low). These two reversible structural changes are attributed to the diffusion-limited aggregation mechanism where the diffusion barriers were quantified as 0.64–0.75 eV varied with the regularity in step edges. In addition, we further simulate a “terrace-edge-kink” model to trace the effect of atomic coordination on structural transition, determining the surface step edge stability. This study presents insight into morphological and structural transformation at surface steps induced by variant external electric fields, establishing a deep understanding in the nature of surface evolution dynamics.