Single atomic manipulation and writing with scanning tunnelling microscopy at low temperatures

In the work reported in this paper, we have used a low-temperature scanning tunnelling microscope (LT-STM) system to manipulate accurately single atoms. We show how we can use a LT-STM to image and modify a bulk Ag(111) surface and manipulate Ag atoms from substrate and evaporated adsorbates on Ag(111) substrates. We present a synergistic combination of STM-induced modification and ordered arrays of nanometre-scale structures. In particular, we demonstrate the ability to modify Ag atomic nanometre structures on the Ag(111) substrate, and some English letters and a Chinese character can be written by single Ag atoms coming from the substrate and evaporated adsorbates on Ag(111). In this way, we supply an effective basis to explore the fundamental physical properties of a nanometre structure and to develop nanotechnology with a `bottom-up' approach.