Electron transport through indium atomic chain arrays self-assembled on a silicon surface

Abstract

We clarify electron conduction through indium atomic chain arrays self-assembled on a clean silicon surface. The conductivity of indium chain arrays is extracted through the comparison of two surface structures, one of which includes intentionally introduced defects in the middle of chains. It exhibits a sudden significant drop around 130 K with decreasing temperature, revealing a metal–insulator phase transition. The influence of the finite domain size of the indium chains is discussed.