It was recalled that recent results had firmly attributed the common C defect on the Si(001) surface to the dissociative adsorption of water. The present work, by examining the dynamic properties of the C defect at about 450K, established the missing mechanistic link between dissociative water adsorption and wet surface oxidation. Combined scanning tunnelling microscopy and density functional theory revealed, in detail, the various paths by which a water molecule broke apart on the surface and inserted O atoms into the surface.

Water on Silicon (001) - C Defects and Initial Steps of Surface Oxidation. O.Warschkow, S.R.Schofield, N.A.Marks, M.W.Radny, P.V.Smith, D.R.McKenzie: Physical Review B, 2008, 77[20], 201305 (4pp)