Abstract
We have investigated Cr deposited on anatase TiO2(001) surfaces using a combinatorial approach. Anatase TiO2(001) thin films covered with Cr metals were prepared on a Nb-doped SrTiO3(001) substrate by combinatorial laser molecular beam epitaxy and characterized by in situ low-energy electron diffraction and ultrahigh vacuum (UHV) scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). STM images of a clean TiO2(001) surface showed that one-dimensional structures along the [100] and [010] directions were formed, resulting in a (1 × 4) surface reconstruction. When Cr atoms were deposited on the anatase TiO2 surface and the films were annealed at 900 K in UHV, the one-dimensional structures became branched and showed short-range disorder. The observed surface structural disordering will be discussed in terms of the lattice strain induced by the Cr atoms diffused into the bulk.
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