Surface Electronic Properties of Fe Nanoparticles on c(2×2)-N/Cu(001)

We prepared nanoscaled particles consisting of ferromagnetic material on a nanostructured template. This nanolithographic procedure allows to fabricate high-density magnetic nanodots in a highly ordered way. For this purpose, Fe particles were grown on the c(2×2)-N/Cu(001) surface which exhibits a checkerboard-like structure. Scanning tunneling spectroscopic measurements demonstrate that the electronic properties of the areas with deposited material are identical to clean copper. Fe nanoparticles on the reconstructed patches show a significantly different electronic behavior. These observations directly hint to a covering of iron with copper on the clean surface.