Morphology of Bi(110) quantum islands on epitaxial graphene

Abstract

Proximitized 2D materials present exciting prospects for exploring new quantum properties, enabled by precise control of structures and interfaces through epitaxial methods. In this study, we investigated the structure of ultrathin coverages formed by depositing high-Z element bismuth (Bi) on monolayer graphene (MLG)/SiC(0001). By utilizing electron diffraction and scanning tunneling microscopy, ultrathin Bi nanostructures epitaxially grown on MLG were studied. Deposition at 300 K resulted in formation of needle-like Bi(110)-terminated islands elongated in the zig-zag direction and aligned at an angle of approximately 1.75∘ with respect to the MLG armchair direction. By both strain and quantum size effects, the shape, the orientation and the thickness of the Bi(110) islands can be rationalized. Additionally, a minority phase of Bi(110) islands orthogonally aligned to the former ones were seen. The four sub-domains of this minority structure are attributed to the formation of mirror twin boundaries, resulting in two potential alignments of Bi(110) majority and minority domains with respect to each other, in addition to two possible alignments of the majority domain with respect to graphene. Notably, an annealing step at 410 K or lowering the deposition temperature, significantly increases the concentration of the Bi(110) minority domain. Our findings shed light on the structural control of proximitized 2D materials, showcasing the potential for manipulating 2D interfaces.