Phys. Rev. Lett. 89, 196104 (2002) [4 pages]Barrierless Formation and Faceting of SiGe Islands on Si(001)Received 25 July 2002; published 22 October 2002 The initial stages of the formation of SiGe islands on Si(001) pose a long-standing puzzle. We show that the behavior can be consistently explained by one simple assumption—that for strained SiGe, (001) is a stable orientation but not a facet orientation. Calculations of energy and morphology reproduce the key features of “prepyramid” and “pyramid” islands, and explain the initial formation and subsequent shape transition. Scanning tunneling microscopy measurements confirm the key assumptions and predictions of the model. © 2002 The American Physical Society URL:
http://link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/PhysRevLett.89.196104
DOI:
10.1103/PhysRevLett.89.196104
PACS:
68.55.Ac, 68.35.-p, 68.37.Ef, 68.65.Hb
See AlsoReply: V. M. Kaganer and K. H. Ploog, Energies of Strained Surfaces and Barrierless Formation of Strained Islands, Phys. Rev. Lett. 91, 099601 (2003). Reply: J. Tersoff, B. J. Spencer, A. Rastelli, and H. Von Känel, Tersoff et al. Reply: Comparison of Continuum and Step Models for SiGe Islands:, Phys. Rev. Lett. 91, 099602 (2003). |
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