Variable Coupling Strength of Silicene on Ag(111)**Supported by the National Basic Research Program of China under Grant Nos 2012CB921703 and 2013CB921702, the National Natural Science Foundation of China under Grant Nos 11334011 and 91121003, and the Strategic Priority Research Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences under Grant No XDB07000000.

Abstract

We perform a scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy study on the electronic structures of √3 × √3-silicene on Ag(111). It is found that the coupling strength of √3 × √3-silicene with the Ag(111) substrate is variable in different regions, giving rise to notable effects in experiments. This evidence of decoupling or variable interaction of silicene with the substrate is helpful to in-depth understanding of the structure and electronic properties of silicene.