Critical behavior of dimers in monolayers adsorbed on heterogeneous solid surfaces

Monte Carlo simulations within the grand canonical ensemble, the multiple-histogram reweighting technique, and the finite size scaling analysis are used to explore the liquid-vapor coexistence of dimeric fluid adsorbed on a heterogeneous square lattice. The adsorption isotherms of dimers, the nature of phase transitions, and the critical parameters are studied for various surfaces. It is demonstrated that the energetic heterogeneity and the topography of the surface considerably affect the behavior of the adsorbed film. (C) 2001 Academic Press.