Atomic scale engineering of nanostructures at silicon carbide surfaces

The atomic scale ordering and properties of cubic silicon carbide surfaces are investigated by room and high-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy. In this review, we will focus on the Si-terminated β-SiC(100) surfaces only. Self-formation of Si atomic lines and dimer vacancy chains on the β-SiC(100) surface is taking place at the phase transition between the 3×2 (Si-rich) and c(4×2) surface reconstructions. Using a rigorous protocol in surface preparation, it is possible to build very long, very straight and defect free Si atomic lines, forming a very large superlattice of massively parallel lines. These self-organized atomic lines are driven by stress. They have unprecedented characteristics with the highest thermal stability ever achieved for nanostructures on a surface (900 °C) and the longest atomic lines ever built on a surface (micrometer scale long). Investigating their dynamics, we learn that their dismantling at high-temperature results from collective and individual mechanisms including one-by-one dimer removal. Overall, this is a model system especially suitable for nanophysics and nanotechnologies.