Journal
ACS NANO
Volume 14, Issue 10, Pages 13172-13179Publisher
AMER CHEMICAL SOC
DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.0c04861
Keywords
topological insulators; Bi2Te3; native point defects; scanning tunneling microscopy; density functional theory
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Funding
- Research Foundation - Flanders (FWO, Belgium)
- KU Leuven Cl program [C12/18/006]
- National Key Projects for the Basic Research of China [2013CB922103, 2011CB922103]
- National Natural Science Foundation of China [91421109, 11134005, 11522432, 11274003]
- Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province [BK20130054]
- Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities
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We successfully identified native point defects that occur in Bi2Te3 crystals by combining high-resolution bias-dependent scanning tunneling microscopy and density functional theory based calculations. As-grown Bi2Te3 crystals contain vacancies, antisites, and interstitial defects that may result in bulk conductivity and therefore may change the insulating bulk character. Here, we demonstrate the interplay between the growth conditions and the densiy of different types of native near-surface defects. In particular, scanning tunneling' spectroscopy reveals the dependence on not only the local atomic environment but also on the growth kinetics and the resulting sample doping from n-type toward intrinsic crystals with the Fermi level positioned inside the energy gap. Our results establish a bias dependent STM signature of the Bi2Te3 native defects and shed light on the link between the native defects and the electronic properties of Bi2Te3, which is relevant for the synthesis of topological insulator materials and the related functional properties.
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