Formation of bismuth nanodot in (4 × 4) vanadium oxide nanomesh on Pd(1 1 1)

The formation of bismuth (Bi) nanodots on a well ordered (4 × 4) vanadium oxide nanomesh on Pd(1 1 1) has been investigated by scanning tunneling microscopy (STM), low-energy electron diffraction (LEED), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). At very low Bi coverage of 0.01 ML, a Bi atom locates in the vanadium oxide nanomesh and every Bi atom forms an isolated Bi nanodot. At the Bi coverage of 0.06 ML, two different heights of Bi nanodots are observed by STM. When the Bi coverage increased to 0.2 ML, most of the nanoholes in the nanomesh are occupied by Bi nanodots, and the remaining Bi atoms form Bi clusters on the vanadium oxide surface.