).Scanning tunneling microscopy experiments on a clean, reduced SnO2(100)-(1 × 1) surface reveal surface defects with zero-, one-, and two-dimensions. Point defects consist of missing SnO/SnO2 units. Line defects are probably crystallographic shear planes that extend to the surface and manifest themselves as rows of atoms, shifted half a unit cell along the [010] direction. Their ends act as preferential nucleation sites for the formation of Pd clusters upon vapor deposition. Areas of a more reduced surface phase, still with a (1 × 1) structure and a half-unit cell deep, form at [001]-oriented step edges.
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