Comparison of the Si(111) (7 × 7) and (1×1)surfaces

High-resolution electron energy-loss spectroscopy and monochromatic low-energy electron diffraction have been applied to the study of the Si(111)(7 × 7) surface and the thermally-quenched Si(111) (1 × 1) surface. For the (1 × 1) surface, the inelastic continuum, observed for the (7 × 7) surface, due to the Drude absorption of electrons in the dangling-bond surface states is not existent, which indicates that the surface-state band associated with the dangling-bonds of the (1 × 1) surface is insulating. The observed electronic transitions indicate that the (7 × 7) and (1 × 1) surfaces have similar local band geometries and that they differ only in long-range order. The (1 × 1) surface is considered to have a disordered structure. The defect model is favored for the (7 × 7) structure.