STM Study on Nanostructures of Au and Al Deposits on HOPG and Amorphous Carbon

Abstract

Initial growth of gold and aluminum nanoclusters on highly oriented pyrolitic graphite (HOPG) or amorphous carbon are investigated using scanning tunneling microscopy. A 2-dimensional hexagonal lattice is formed on HOPG. Such 2-dimensional nanoclusters are oriented to the direction rotated by 30°C from graphite lattice, and the atomic distance of the nanoclusters is estimated to be 0.424 nm. The nanoclusters are linked with each other along the directions mentioned above when deposited atoms migrate on the HOPG surface at room temperature.