AFM tip-induced ripple pattern on AIII-BV semiconductor surfaces

Modification of c(8x2) InSb(0 0 1) surface induced by prolonged scanning with an atomic force microscope tip has been investigated. The experiment performed with loads of few tens of nanoNewtons resulted in creation of ripples perpendicular to the fast scan direction. It was found that terrace edges are acting as initial instabilities leading to development of the ripple pattern. As a result, information about initial surface topography is preserved in the ripple amplitude, even so the final height of the ripples and their periodicity are determined by the tip curvature.