Electrochemical formation of Se atomic layers on Au(100)

Studies of the electrodeposition of atomic layers of Se have been prompted by their importance in the formation of II-VI compound semiconductors by electrochemical atomic layer epitaxy (ECALE). ECALE is a method where a compound is formed by the sequential, alternated, electrodeposition of atomic layers of the constituent elements making up a compound. It has been shown that the structure of the first atomic layer is generally the most critical. The present article describes three different methods for forming that first atomic layer. Studies of the structures resulting from those methods have revealed four distinctly different Se structures, all of which can be considered atomic layers, as none is more than a single-Se atom thick.