The direct observation of surface reconstruction induced by the adsorption of C60 molecules was reported. At sub-monolayer and full monolayer coverage of C60 on Ge(111), two surface phases (3√3 x 3√3)R30° and (√13 x √13)R14° as well as a localized metastable 5 x 5 phase were identified by low-energy electron diffraction and scanning tunnelling microscopy. The formation of the two phases was facilitated by induced reconstructions of the Ge surface into different surface structures. Models for these surface structures were proposed that elucidated the close interplay between the adsorbed C60 molecules and the host Ge surface.

C60-Induced Reconstruction of the Ge(111) Surface. H.Xu, D.M.Chen, W.N.Creager: Physical Review B, 1994, 50, 8454-9