Step rearrangement on Si(001) surface during diborane exposure

We observed step rearrangement on Si(001) surface during B adsorption by using scanning tunneling microscopy. The coverage of B atoms was varied by exposing the surface to diborane during observation. Our results showed that B atoms adsorbed on Si(001) are responsible for the step rearrangement. Variation of the terrace size was analyzed as a function of diborane dose. Comparing our results with previous reports, we ascribed the dominant factor in terrace narrowing during B adsorption to the reduction of the energies to create SA steps.