Abstract
The nanometer-scale indentation of a crystalline surface produces nanostructures that evolve on a timescale that is inaccessible to existing imaging methods for the vast majority of surfaces. We have been able to observe the dynamic evolution of the freshly cleaved surface of a NaCl(100) crystal after indentation with an atomic force microscope (AFM) in air. Here we present sequential AFM images featuring vertical atomic resolution which show that atomic terrace motion is greatly enhanced by the AFM indentation. Moreover, some of the nanometric features generated by the indentation become reassimilated into the crystalline surface structure of the surroundings of the indentation over a period of time of the order of several minutes.
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