Investigation of the initial stages of growth of Ag films on Si(111)7 × 7 by a combination of LEED,AES, and UPS

The formation of the Si(111) √3 Ag intermediate layer occurs by two-dimensional nucleation and is not completed before one monolayer. The density of the Ag 4d band is fully developed at a substrate temperature of 800 K but not yet at 525 K. At lower temperatures an intermediate layer is also formed, but with different geometry and density of states. The development of the Ag band structure with film thickness and cluster size is discussed.