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Abstract

In recent experiments of metal deposition onto cleaved GaP(110) surfaces we have shown that light sources used in photoelectron spectroscopy may induce a surface photovoltage (SPV), which causes a substantial deviation from the ground state potential distribution, and may induce errors in the determination of band bending by photoemission. Here we analyze the temperature‐dependent movement of the surface Fermi level in n‐ and p‐type GaP(110) surfaces as a function of indium and silver deposition, taking into account the presence of the SPV. It is found that changes in the substrate temperature not only modify the adlayer morphology and metallicity, but also the surface electron‐hole recombination rate. We observe that the temperature‐dependent shift of the semiconductor core levels is always accompanied by a similar shift of the metal core level and Fermi edge, suggesting that the reversible temperature‐dependent band bending recently reported for metal/III–V semiconductor interfaces is related to the SPV, and does not represent a ground state property of the interfacial electronic structure. Implications of these results on current models concerning Schottky barrier formation are discussed.