Quantum size effects in the surface energy of Pb∕Si(111) film nanostructures studied by surface x-ray diffraction and model calculations
Abstract
We have used surface x-ray diffraction from a synchrotron source, along with models based upon a free-electron gas confined to a quantum well, to study quantum size effects in the surface energy of ultrathin Pb films grown on pretreated Si(111) substrates. Films grown at $110\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}\mathrm{K}$ are smooth, but as they are annealed to near room temperature, their morphology is observed evolving through various metastable states and eventually to a roughened state in local equilibrium. Strong variations in the stability of different island heights are observed, consistent with quasibilayer oscillations in the surface energy found from the theoretical free-electron calculations. By analyzing the quasiequilibrium distribution of thicknesses, empirical information on the film surface energy is obtained for a wide range of thicknesses. The morphological annealing behavior of the films is also found to be explained by the deduced surface energy.
Read the paper
Related studies
- Developing high safety Li-metal anodes for future high-energy Li-metal batteries: strategies and perspectives
- Structure and Energy Transfer in Photosystems of Oxygenic Photosynthesis
- Ground- and Space-Based Gamma-Ray Astronomy
- Energy Functions in De Novo Protein Design: Current Challenges and Future Prospects
- Electronic structure of ions and molecules in solution: a view from modern soft X-ray spectroscopies
- Arising 2D Perovskites for Ionizing Radiation Detection
Go deeper in Evidence Hub
Evidence Hub adds a study data sheet (design, sample size, evidence level, key numbers), an AI summary and a chat grounded in the paper's text.