It was recalled that a vicinal (111) surface exhibited well-defined single steps after annealing (1200C, H2). This contrasted sharply with the step bunches that were seen on surfaces that were annealed in Ar. In order to explain its ability to unzip step bunches, it was suggested that H destroyed the faulted triangles of a [112¯] step. This eliminated that type of step, and eventually left only single [1¯1¯2] steps on the surface.

L.Zhong, R.Takeda, K.Izunome, Y.Matsushita, Y.Aiba, J.Matsushita, J.Yoshikawa, K.Hayashi, H.Shirai, H.Saito: Applied Physics Letters, 1996, 68[17], 2349-51