AVS 50th International Symposium
    Surface Science Monday Sessions
       Session SS3-MoM

Paper SS3-MoM7
The Frustrated Alloying of Ge on Ultra-Flat Si(001)

Monday, November 3, 2003, 10:20 am, Room 328

Session: Surface Diffusion and Wetting
Presenter: J.B. Hannon, IBM
Authors: J.B. Hannon, IBM
M. Copel, IBM
M.C. Reuter, IBM
R.M. Tromp, IBM
Correspondent: Click to Email
Using low-energy electron microscopy and atomic-force microscopy, we have investigated the alloying of Ge at the Si(001) surface during growth at elevated temperature (750 to 900 C). We show that alloying occurs primarily via step flow during growth. However, on large terraces, where step flow does not occur, complex and coordinated step structures ("stripes") spontaneously form and migrate over the surface. The stripes consist of a string of alternating adatom and vacancy islands, and move at speeds approaching 1 micron per sec. As these structures traverse the large terraces, they leave alloyed regions in their wake.