DYNAMIC EVOLUTION OF PYRAMID STRUCTURES DURING GROWTH OF EPITAXIAL FE(001) FILMS

The growth of epitaxial Fe(001) films UHV deposited onto Mg(001) substrates has been investigated at conditions where Schwoebel barriers suppress the step-down diffusion of impinging atoms. In nearly perfect agreement with the theoretical predictions of Siegert and Plischke [Phys. Rev. Lett. 73, 1517 (1994)], scanning tunneling microscopy reveals the development of mesoscopic pyramidlike structures at the surface that grow in time according to a power law of t(1/4). The dynamic nature of the growth process favors the formation of {012} rather than {011} facets as side planes of the pyramids emphasizing, in general, the importance of kinetic versus thermodynamic stability.