We have investigated the effect of Bi on the heteroepitaxial growth of Co on Cu by reflection high-energy electron diffraction (RHEED) measurements. It was found that Bi enhanced the layer-by-layer growth of Co on the Cu (111) surfaces at 100°C. The dependence of the growth on Bi layer thickness suggested that there existed a suitable amount of Bi surfactant layer that enhanced smoother layered growth. On the contrary, for the case of Co growth on Cu (100), Bi depressed the layer-by-layer growth of Co on Cu (100). The surface segregation effect of Bi was also studied by Auger electron spectroscopy (AES).
We have chosen Bi as the surfactant atom in the heteroepitaxial growth of Co on Au(111). It was found that Bi induces layer-by-layer (LBL) growth at room temperature. With pre-deposition of 0.2 ∼ 0.8Å Bi on Au(111) prior to the evaporation of Co, more long-lasting RHEED intensity oscillations were observed and this implies that it induces the LBL growth of Co film. The result of the dependence of the growth behavior as a function of Bi layer thickness suggests that there is a suitable amount of Bi surfactant layer that induces the smoother LBL growth. A surface segregation of Bi was found at the top of surface and acts as a surfactant by promoting the interlayer transport.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.