A comprehensive analysis of the (root 13 x root 13)R13.9 degrees type II structure of silicene on Ag(111)

International audienceIn this paper, using the same geometrical approach as for the (2 root 3 x 2 root 3)R30 degrees structure (Jamgotchian et al 2015 J. Phys.: Condens. Matter 27 395002), for the (root 13 x root 13)R13.9 degrees type II structure, we propose an atomic model of the silicene layer based on a periodic relaxation of the strain epitaxy. This relaxation creates periodic arrangements of perfect areas of (root 13 x root 13)R13.9 degrees type II structure surrounded by defect areas. A detailed analysis of the main published experimental results, obtained by scanning tunneling microscopy and by low energy electron diffraction, shows a good agreement with the geometrical model