Auger electron spectroscopy and work function characterization of oxygen adsorption on Ba-covered Ni(110)

The adsorption of oxygen on a Ba-covered Ni(110) surface has been investigated mainly by Auger electron spectroscopy (AES) and work function (WF) measurements. Low energy AES lines indicate that O interacts with Ba and Ni as well. Both Ba-O and Ni-O interactions take place simultaneously on the surface, progressively leading to BaO and NiO formation. Ba enhances the oxidation of the substrate due to the higher sticking coefficient of O on the Ba/Ni surface. The oxygen interacts with the nickel substrate even at high adsorbate coverage, incorporating under the Ba layer. A part of the Ba adatoms remains non-oxidized even at a high O exposure