One-dimensional growth of MgO film on SrTiO3(100)

Abstract

We studied the growth mode and electronic structure of MgO thin films on a Nb-doped SrTiO3(100) single crystal by scanning tunnelling microscopy and scanning tunnelling spectroscopy. The MgO films grew in a one-dimensional (1D) chain growth mode on the SrTiO3. It is thought that the driving forces for this growth mode are compressive stress on the MgO films and the reconstructed SrTiO3 surface. When we imaged the MgO films at various tunnelling biases, the chains disappeared in the STM topography at a bias lower than 2.0 V and the underlying SrTiO3(100) surface beneath the MgO films could be imaged with an atomic resolution.