Abstract
Fractal islands are normally observed when the growth is a result of many random coalescence events of small islands or atoms with the growing cluster. In this paper, we show that fractalization can be observed also for growing islands at a coverage which is close to 0.5 monolayers. This was shown for a Si(1 1 1) surface covered by 0.53 monolayer of silicon. This fractalization is explained by the simple conservative Ising model, where the diffusion of a single atom is simulated by a single spin flip. In this model, fractal islands are observed over a finite scaling range where smaller islands have a dimension of 2 and larger ones are fractal. The fractal dimension and the scaling range are dependent on the fraction (equivalent to coverage) p of spin up (or down). Both the dimension and range increase as p approaches 0.5. We show that the growth of the clusters is in agreement with a classical t0.33 law [Phys. Rev. B 34 (1986) 7845].
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 35-42 |
Number of pages | 8 |
Journal | Surface Science |
Volume | 520 |
Issue number | 1-2 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - 20 Nov 2002 |
Keywords
- Dendritic and/or fractal surfaces
- Growth
- Monte Carlo simulations
- Scanning tunneling microscopy
- Silicon
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Condensed Matter Physics
- Surfaces and Interfaces
- Surfaces, Coatings and Films
- Materials Chemistry