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In this work we report on ballistic electron emission spectroscopy (BEES) studies on epitaxial layers of silver grown on silicon surfaces, with either a Si(111)-(7  × 7) or Si(100)-(2  × 1) surface reconstruction. The experiments were done at low temperature and in ultra-high vacuum (UHV). In addition, BEES measurements on polycrystalline Ag films grown on hydrogen-terminated H:Si(111)-(1  × 1) and H:Si(100)-(2  × 1) surfaces were performed. The Schottky barrier heights were evaluated by BEES. The results are compared to the values for the barrier height reported for macroscopic Schottky diodes. We show that the barrier heights for the epitaxial films substantially differ from the values measured on polycrystalline Ag films, suggesting a strong effect of the interface on the barrier height. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work we report on the growth of high quality bismuth films with a layer thickness of 3-4 nm on a (100)-oriented silicon surface. We present a combined STM and LEED study to determine the best possible growth conditions regarding, for example, film flatness, grain size and low surface roughness. The deposition of bismuth was performed at a low temperature of about 130 K followed by moderate annealing to an ambient temperature or to temperatures slightly above. The result is an epitaxial Bi film with low surface roughness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]