Insulating oxide surfaces and nanostructures

This contribution describes some peculiarities of the science of oxide surfaces and nano structures and proposes a simple conceptual scheme to understand their electronic structure, in the spirit of Jacques Friedel's work. Major results on the effects of non-stoichiometry and polarity are presented, for both semi-infinite surfaces and ultra-thin films, and promising lines of research for the near future are sketched. (C) 2015 Academie des sciences. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS.