A rich menagerie of structures is identified at 5 K following adsorption of low coverages (≤0.05 monolayers) of S on Cu(111) at room temperature. This paper emphasizes the reconstructions at the steps. The A-type close-packed step has 1 row of S atoms along its lower edge, where S atoms occupy alternating pseudo-fourfold-hollow (p4fh) sites. Additionally, there are 2 rows of S atoms of equal density on the upper edge, bridging a row of extra Cu atoms, together creating an extended chain. The B-type close-packed step exhibits an even more complex reconstruction, in which triangle-shaped groups of Cu atoms shift out of their original sites and form a base for S adsorption at (mostly) 4fh sites. We propose a mechanism by which these triangles could generate Cu–S complexes and short chains like those observed on the terraces.
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See supplementary material at http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.4921258 for tunneling conditions for the STM images presented in the main text.
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