STM observation of the quantum interference effect in finite-sized graphite Original Research Article

Superperiodic patterns were observed by STM on two kinds of finite-sized graphene sheets. One is nanographene sheets inclined from a highly oriented pyrolitic graphite (HOPG) substrate and the other is a several-layer-thick graphene sheets with dislocation-network structures against a HOPG substrate. As for the former, the in-plane periodicity increased gradually in the direction of inclination, and it is easily changed by attachment of a nanographite flake on the nanographene sheets. The oscillation pattern can be explained by the interference of electron waves confined in the inclined nanographene sheets. As for the latter, patterns and their corrugation amplitudes depended on the bias voltage and on the terrace height from the HOPG substrate. The interference effect by the perturbed and unperturbed waves in the overlayer is responsible for the patterns whose local density of states varies in space.