A preparation method for atomically clean sapphire surfaces and high resolution topographic method for their imaging by non-contact atomic force microscopy

Abstract

We sought to establish a method for preparing an atomically clean surface of sapphire (Al 2 O 3 (0001)) using non-contact atomic force microscopy (NC-AFM). Repeated iterations of Ar + sputtering and annealing are generally required to prepare a clean surface of TiO 2 (110) or other metal oxides. In the case of Al 2 O 3 (0001), however, we were able to achieve a periodic pattern of the Al 2 O 3 (0001) surface using only one iteration of sputtering and annealing.We also succeeded in resolving single atoms of the unit cell of the Al 2 O 3 (0001) in topographic mode imaging.