Muscovite mica: Flatter than a pancake

作者：de Poel Wester^*; Pintea Stelian; Drnec Jakub; Carla Francesco; Felici Roberto; Mulder Peter; Elemans Johannes A A W; van Enckevort Willem J P; Rowan Alan E; Vlieg Elias

来源：Surface Science, 2014, 619: 19-24.

DOI：10.1016/j.susc.2013.10.008

• Muscovite mica
• Flatness
• Surface X-ray diffraction
• Optical microscopy
• Surface terminations

Muscovite mica is a widely used material because of its transparency, heat resistance and especially its flatness. This study investigates how flat muscovite mica really is. The surface of cleaved muscovite mica was studied with the help of several optical techniques, surface X-ray diffraction and with atomic force microscopy. The results show that for high-quality muscovite mica, large (>1 cm(2)) step-free surface areas exist, which makes it one of the flattest materials around. Several reasons are given to explain why this crystal is so incredibly flat. The flatness of muscovite mica can be exploited in applications such as the surface force apparatus and creating a flat interface for organic solar cells.

• 出版日期2014-1