X-ray photoelectron diffraction (XPD) study of the atomic structure of the ultrathin CdS phase deposited on Ag(111) by electrochemical atomic layer epitaxy (ECALE)

Electrochemical Atomic Layer Epitaxy (ECALE) was used to obtain multi-atomic layers of CdS on a single crystal Ag(111) substrate. Electrochemical stripping measurements indicate that the amount of Cd and S in these films corresponds to the stoichiometric 1:1 ratio. This result was confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Measurements performed by X-ray photoelectron diffraction (XPD) permitted the determination of the structure and orientation of the CdS phase. This structure turned out to be the wurtzite lattice with the (0001) plane parallel to the substrate plane and a Cd type termination.