AB initio calculation of the atomic and electronic structure for Sb adsorbed on GaAs(110)

Abstract

We report results obtained by a systematic study of Sb adsorption on the relaxed GaAs(110) surface, using density-functional theory within the local-density approximation (LDA) and norm-conserving, fully separable, ab-initio pseudopotentials. The GaAs(110) surface is simulated by a slab geometry wherein the atomic structure of the Sb atoms at the preferred adsorption positions and the uppermost substrate layer is optimized by minimizing the total energy, in contrast to previously reported theoretical approaches obtaining the surface bandstructure for given geometrical equilibrium structures. Sb coverages of Q=1/2 and Θ=1 are considered. We give a detailed analysis of the total-energy surface of the Sb/GaAs(110) system and identify stable and metastable adsorption sites. The resulting equilibrium geometries are discussed: We interpret these results in terms of the Sb-Sb interaction within the chains parallel to the [1¯11] direction and of possible structural instabilities in such chains. The atomic positions are compared with results of LEED analysis, stating an overall agreement except the buckling of the chain atoms. The resulting electronic properties (surface bandstructure, photothreshold, Schottky barrier) are discussed within the context of experimental data available from STM, photoemission spectroscopy, etc.