2026-07-072026-07-07http://salesiana.dossiersoluciones.com/handle/123456789/219913A new structural model for the Si(331)-(12x1) reconstruction is proposed. Based on scanning tunneling microscopy images of unprecedented resolution, low-energy electron diffraction data, and first-principles total-energy calculations, we demonstrate that the reconstructed Si(331) surface shares the same elementary building blocks as the Si(110)-(16x2) surface, establishing the pentamer as a universal building block for complex silicon surface reconstructions.Other Condensed Mattertext