Scanning tunnelling microscopy was used to produce images of InSb(100) prepared by in situ treatment of several cycles of low-energy argon ion bombardment and annealing. Electron diffraction studies, following annealing to 625K, show the c(8 x 2) pattern associated with the In-rich reconstruction also observed during molecular beam epitaxial growth. These scanning tunnelling microscopy images demonstrate the improved surface ordering with successive cycles resulting in atomically flat terraces over areas of the sample in excess of 1000Å x 1000Å. The observed reduction of macroscopic morphological defects, such as In droplets, was discussed as a function of surface treatment.

Imaging Ion-Bombarded III-V Semiconductor Surfaces - a Scanning Tunnelling Microscopy Study of InSb(100). M.O.Schweitzer, F.M.Leibsle, T.S.Jones, C.F.McConville, N.V.Richardson: Semiconductor Science and Technology, 1993, 8[S], 342-4