Abstract
This review discusses the state of the art in two related research areas: the surfaces of niobium and of its related group IV–VI transition metals, and surface (primarily oxide) nanostructures that form on niobium (and group IV–VI d-metals) due to gas adsorption or impurity diffusion from the bulk. Experimental (X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, photoelectron diffraction, scanning tunneling microscopy) and theoretical (ab initio simulation) results on d-metal surfaces are summarized and reviewed.