Real-space observation of xenon adsorption and desorption kinetics on graphite (0001) by photoemission electron microscopy

Abstract The growth and desorption of Xe monolayers on the basal plane of graphite has been investigated by real-space imaging using photoemission electron microscopy. Adsorption kinetics was studied at different substrate temperatures (39–65 K), corresponding to different growth modes. Coexisting phases showed up as different grey values in the image. Typical domain sizes of the 2D solid phases around 60 K are of the order of one to several μm. The domains exhibit an elongated shape with their long axis oriented preferentially parallel to step edges of the substrate. With increasing coverage the brightness of the domains increases, the 2D gas-phase regions shrink and finally disappear at h…