THIN-FILM ISLAND GROWTH-KINETICS - A GRAZING-INCIDENCE SMALL-ANGLE X-RAY-SCATTERING STUDY OF GOLD ON GLASS

The growth during deposition and during post-deposition annealing of gold islands (40-80 angstrom in diameter) on glass substrates have been examined quantitatively and in situ with grazing incidence small angle X-ray scattering (GISAXS). The average island sizes and center-to-center island spacings have been determined as a function of gold coverage and annealing time and temperature. The annealing kinetics do not exhibit a power law dependence of average island size versus time. Instead, the data is best described by a soft-impingement, diffusion-limited, island-mobility-dominated growth model. This model yields a quantitative signature that growth is a result of island mobility. The activation energy and diffusion coefficient for the island mobility growth process are found to be of the same order of magnitude as values for single atom surface diffusion.