Diffusion of nanoclusters on non-ideal surfaces

We use molecular-dynamics simulations to investigate the diffusion of nanoclusters on non-ideal surfaces, containing bond-length disorder, vacancy islands or monoatomic steps. We find that bond-length disorder does not affect diffusion significantly. When vacancy islands are present, it is found tha...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Physica. E, Low-dimensional systems & nanostructures Low-dimensional systems & nanostructures, 2004-02, Vol.21 (1), p.71-76
Main Authors: Jensen, Pablo, Clément, Arnaud, J. Lewis, Laurent
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Cluster
Condensed matter: structure, mechanical and thermal properties
Defect
Diffusion
Diffusion
interface formation
Exact sciences and technology
Nanostructure
Physics
Solid surfaces and solid-solid interfaces
Step
Surfaces and interfaces
thin films and whiskers (structure and nonelectronic properties)
Vacancy
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:We use molecular-dynamics simulations to investigate the diffusion of nanoclusters on non-ideal surfaces, containing bond-length disorder, vacancy islands or monoatomic steps. We find that bond-length disorder does not affect diffusion significantly. When vacancy islands are present, it is found that the diffusion path avoids the neighborhood of these defects, which can be explained in terms of an effective repulsion between the defect and the cluster. Indeed, when a step is present, we find a barrier which opposes diffusion, analogous to the well-known Ehrlich–Schwoebel barrier for adatom diffusion.
ISSN:1386-9477
1873-1759
DOI:10.1016/j.physe.2003.07.001