SPECIAL ISSUE ARTICLE
Optimal Growth Conditions for Selective Ge Islands Positioning on Pit-Patterned Si(001)
L-NESS and Materials Science Department, University of Milano-Bicocca, Via R. Cozzi 53, 20125, Milano, Italy
Nanoscale Research Letters 2010, 5:1873-1877 doi:10.1007/s11671-010-9723-x
Published: 6 August 2010Abstract
We investigate ordered nucleation of Ge islands on pit-patterned Si(001) using an original hybrid Kinetic Monte Carlo model. The method allows us to explore long time-scale evolution while using large simulation cells. We analyze the possibility to achieve selective nucleation and island homogeneity as a function of the various parameters (flux, temperature, pit period) able to influence the growth process. The presence of an optimal condition where the atomic diffusivity is sufficient to guarantee nucleation only within pits, but not so large to induce significant Ostwald ripening, is clearly demonstrated.
