Scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy of atomic aggregates on ultrathin NaCl films

Ultrathin insulating films (with a thickness of only a few atomic layers) grown on metal substrates allow the use of scanning tunneling microscope (STM) to study the intrinsic properties of atomic defects, molecules and nanoparticles, as they are electronically decoupled from the metallic substrate by the insulating film. In this work we investigated atomic dopants and defects as well as few-atom nanoparticles on ultrathin NaCl insulating films, using STM at low temperatures and under ultrahigh vacuum conditions. We hereby focused on manipulation of native vacancies, on probing of the electronic and magnetic properties of substitutional magnetic dopants, and on atomic-resolution imaging of small nanoclusters that arenbsp;on NaCl grown on metallic Au(111) surfaces.nrpages: 145status: publishe