Abstract

SUMMARYScanning tunnelling microscopy, combined with complementary electrical and analytical measurements, provides a powerful method for examining the behaviour of mercury on gold‐film sensors under actual sensor operating conditions. The films exhibit a linear increase in resistance upon adsorption of mercury, and this resistive change is accompanied by a decrease in measured barrier height at submonolayer coverages of mercury. STM studies of changes in the effective barrier height upon mercury adsorption provide evidence that mercury migrates to grain boundaries for films exposed at submonolayer coverages. Coverages in excess of a monolayer result in a nearly constant, reduced effective barrier height across the entire surface, which is indicative of a more uniform distribution of mercury over the surface. This behaviour is interpreted in terms of the adsorption of mercury onto defective, contaminated gold surfaces.

Talk to us

Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have

Schedule a call

Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.