The homoepitaxial growth of Si on a Si(111) surface for Tϭ280Ϫ410°C, and thicknesses up to 210 bilayers has been evaluated using scanning tunneling microscopy and detailed statistical analyses. In the early stages of growth, the formation of and nucleation at antiphase domain boundaries and the formation of metastable crystalline structures become increasingly important at lower temperatures. At larger film thickness, the height-height correlation functions do not reveal the presence of scale-invariant morphologies. Instead, anomalous formation of pyramidal structures with surrounding denuded zones is observed at temperatures of 360°C and below. The pyramid size increases with increasing temperature and film thickness, but this increase is not consistent with a simple coarsening process. Atomic-scale images indicate a correlation of these pyramids with the metastable crystalline structures observed in growth nuclei at lower coverages. Potential mechanisms for formation of these anomalous structures and their consequences for scale-invariant growth are discussed. Our results indicate that the underlying crystal structure and its associated reconstructions can play a significant role in determining surface growth morphologies, complicating their long-wavelength dynamic scaling properties. ͓S0163-1829͑98͒00716-4͔
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