High density phase of oxygen layer on Ag(111) observed by atomic force microscopy

Abstract

We have succeeded for the first time in observing the high-density phase of a monolayer of oxygen molecules on Ag(111) in real space by atomic force microscopy. It was difficult to observe nondestructively by scanning tunneling microscopy.The local observation revealed that the phase has a domain structure and lattice distortion, which had not been reported previously. Magnetic phase transitions with lattice deformation have been reported on graphite substrates, so the lattice distortion is expected to be related to the spin of oxygen molecules.