Nanoepitaxy:  Size Selection in Self-Assembled and Oriented Al Nanocrystals Grown on a Quasicrystal Surface

Abstract

The unusual interfacial lattice-mismatch properties of a periodic film and a quasiperiodic substrate are investigated in the Al films grown on an Al−Co−Ni decagonal substrate. The resulting mismatch causes the formation of well-oriented nanometric single crystals of Al, satisfying the epitaxial conditions on a local scale. Total-energy calculations based on a rigid-lattice atomic model for the interface between a cubic and the decagonal surface reproduce the low-energy electron diffraction results concerning the size of the clusters, their distribution, and the details of the orientational alignment of aluminum islands. Such systems can be used in self-size-selecting growth of nanocrystals.

Structural modifications upon deposition of Fe on the icosahedral quasicrystal Al–Pd–Mn

“…In order to investigate the influence of the quasiperiodic structure of a substrate on the growth mode of a single-element surface film, several groups have deposited different adsorbates 0039 on QC surfaces. For the deposition of metals on quasicrystalline (qc) surfaces, the observations can be represented in three groups: (i) inhomogeneous nucleation for minute amounts of adsorbates [2][3][4][5], (ii) pseudomorphic growth for submonolayer coverages [6][7][8], and (iii) domains with orientations mediated by the substrate symmetry for thicker films [3][4][5][9][10][11].…”

Nanoepitaxy on quasicrystal surfaces

“…The AES spectra were recorded using a cylindrical mirror analyzer operating with a constant relative resolution of ∆E/E = 0.8%. Experimental details have previously been reported [14,7,15,10]. Fig.…”

The surface science of quasicrystals

“…This mode is adopted by Al and Ag on icosahedral Al-Pd-Mn and decagonal Al-Ni-Co and Fe on icosahedral Al-Pd-Mn [90][91][92]. Sometimes the adsorbing species will intermix with the quasicrystal substrate, forming an interfacial alloyed rotational epitaxial layer.…”