HREEL study of c(53×9)rect-N structure on Ni(1 1 1) surface

In this work we have prepared and characterized by low energy electron diffraction (LEED) and high-resolution electron energy loss spectroscopy (HREELS) the Ni(1 1 1)-c(53×9)rect-N surface structure formed by saturating the Ni(1 1 1) surface with nitrogen atoms. This structure was obtained by the ion-gauge assisted N2 exposure method. The loss spectra show features at 50 and 25 meV assigned to the N-Ni vibration and to a phonon of the reconstructed surface, respectively. We also investigated the case in which the Ni(1 1 1) surface was covered with a low coverage of N atoms.