LEEM and XPEEM studies of C-AFM induced surface modifications of thermally grown SiO 2

Abstract

The process of local anodic oxidation, where a positive voltage is applied between a sample and a conducting probe, is well understood. Here, conducting atomic force microscope (C-AFM) induced surface modifications of thermally grown SiO 2 are investigated for opposite (i.e. negative) sample bias. Also at this polarity, surprisingly, the appearance of protrusions is observed. To obtain information on the nature of these protrusions, low-energy electron microscopy (LEEM) and X-ray photoemission electron microscopy (XPEEM) measurements were performed. Photoemission spectra reveal that the structures formed by C-AFM are chemically homogeneous, and that they are caused by the growth of additional SiO 2 on the sample surface.