Kinetics of mesa overlayer growth: Climbing of adatoms onto the mesa top

Abstract

We have calculated the energy barriers for an adatom climbing up onto a Pb mesa top either over a facet-facet edge or through a facet-step joint, using a modified embedded atom method. We found that the second process is not only thermodynamically more favorable than the first one but also much faster with a diminishing barrier. Our results provide a plausible explanation for the experimentally observed intriguing growth behavior of a Pb mesa. The underlying mechanisms can be generally applicable to other systems. (c) 2008 American Institute of Physics.