In situ STM studies of Sb(111) electrodes in aqueous electrolyte solutions

The in situ STM studies of Sb(111), which was cleaved at the temperature of liquid nitrogen inside the glove box, and of Sb(111), which was electrochemically polished in the KI + HCl aqueous solution, have been performed under negative polarizations from − 0.8 to − 0.15 V (versus Ag|AgCl in sat. KCl aqueous solution) in the 0.5 M Na2SO4 + 0.0003 M H2SO4 aqueous solution. The atomic resolution has been achieved. The in situ STM data show that there are no quick surface reconstruction processes and the surface structure of cleaved and electrochemically polished Sb(111) is stable within the potential region investigated, similarly for Bi(111) single crystal electrode, previously studied [S. Kallip, E. Lust, Electrochem. Comm. 7 (2005) 863].