薄膜外延生长的计算机模拟

以Cu膜为例，用Monte-Carlo算法模拟了薄膜生长的随机过程，并提出了更加完善的模型.在合理选择原子间相互作用计算方法的基础上，考虑了原子的吸附、在生长表面的迁移及迁移所引起的近邻原子连带效应、从生长表面的脱附等过程.模拟计算了薄膜的早期成核情况以及表面粗糙度和相对密度.结果表明，随着衬底温度的升高或入射率的降低，沉积在衬底上的原子逐步由离散型分布向聚集状态过渡形成一些岛核，并且逐步由二维岛核向三维岛核过渡.在一定的原子入射率下，存在三个优化温度，成核率最高时的最大成核温度Tn、薄膜的表面粗糙度最低 关键词： Monte-Carlo算法 计算机模拟 薄膜生长     

液相基底温度对沉积银原子及其团簇凝聚过程的影响

研究了沉积银原子及其团簇在液相基底(硅油)表面的凝聚过程随基底温度的变化关系.实验结果表明:当硅油基底温度升高时,沉积银原子及其团簇的凝聚过程仍基本符合二阶段生长模型; 样品具有明显的边缘效应,在样品中心区域,凝聚体的覆盖率比边缘的相应值小,样品中心区域的凝聚体覆盖率先随薄膜名义厚度的增加迅速增大,然后逐渐趋于饱和,覆盖率趋于饱和时的膜厚值随基底温度的升高而降低; 对于一定的薄膜名义厚度,硅油基底温度越高,中心区域的凝聚体覆盖率越小.银原子凝聚体的分枝平均长度随基底温度的演化过程也具有类似的规律.对沉积银 关键词： 薄膜 液相基底 分枝状凝聚体 生长模型     

载能原子沉积Au/Au(100)外延薄膜生长的计算机模拟

在分子动力学研究的基础上建立了载能原子的沉积动力学物理模型,并根据在局域环境下的表面原子扩散模型,通过运动学Monte Carlo方法研究了载能粒子沉积Au/Au(100)薄膜的初期生长过程,探讨了载能粒子沉积对薄膜生长的影响及其随基体温度的变化.通过计算机模拟发现：载能粒子沉积的Au/Au(100)薄膜生长仍然呈现层状生长-三维岛状生长-准二维层状.在薄膜生长初期,载能粒子的作用是促进表面原子的成核,增加基体表面的缺陷;在薄膜的生长阶段,载能粒子通过抑制三维岛的生长速率起着平滑薄膜表面形貌的作用.载能粒 关键词：     

Be原子在Be基底上的沉积过程研究

利用分子动力学方法模拟了Be原子在Be基底上的沉积过程. 模拟了沉积粒子不同入射动能条件下, 沉积薄膜表面形态的差异. 在一定能量范围内, 增加粒子入射动能可以减小薄膜的表面粗糙度. 但是, 过高的入射动能, 不利于减小薄膜表面粗糙度. 通过沉积薄膜中原子配位数以及单个原子势能沿薄膜厚度的分布, 分析沉积原子入射动能对于薄膜及表面结构的影响. 沉积动能较大时, 薄膜的密度较大; 单个原子势能沿薄膜厚度分布较为连续; 同时薄膜中原子应力沿薄膜厚度分布较为连续. 最后, 分析了沉积粒子能量转化的过程、粒子初始动能对基底表面附近粒子局部动能增加的影响.     

非均匀基底上三维薄膜生长的模拟研究

考虑原子在基底表面的扩散、沿岛周界的扩散和不同层间的扩散以及非均匀基底上表面吸附能分布的各向异性，建立起非均匀基底表面上原子扩散和三维薄膜生长的动力学蒙特卡罗模型.模拟得到在不同生长条件下出现的层状生长、岛状生长和混合生长三种生长模式和相应的多层薄膜生长形貌图.通过统计三维薄膜中原子在各层的分布，计算薄膜的表面粗糙度，得到薄膜生长模式与生长条件之间的关系. 关键词： 薄膜生长 非均匀基底 动力学蒙特卡罗模拟     

反应限制聚集模型的动力学行为的研究

根据反应限制聚集（reaction limited aggregation, RLA）模型,研究表面活性剂存在时 的薄膜外延生长动力学过程. 研究结果表明,在二维岛的生长初期,分形岛与紧致岛具有不 同的岛密度和“死”原子密度（岛的相对总面积）增长方式：分形岛密度随覆盖率生长指数 小于1,紧致岛密度的生长指数大于1;分形岛相对总面积随覆盖率线性增长,紧致岛相对总 面积随覆盖率非线性增长. 关键词： 反应限制聚集模型 岛密度 “死”原子密度     

MgO（001）表面上沉积MgO薄膜过程的分子动力学模拟

采用分子动力学方法模拟了MgO分子连续沉积于MgO（001）表面上的薄膜生长过程,分析了衬底温度和分子入射能对MgO分子在衬底表面上的扩散能力以及对衬底表面覆盖率的影响.模拟结果表明,随着衬底温度的升高,在衬底表面上沉积的MgO分子扩散能力增强,MgO薄膜层中空位缺陷变少.低温下,分子入射能的增大有助于提高衬底表面覆盖率;高温下,表面覆盖率随入射能增大到3.0 eV时达到最大值,入射能继续增大,表面覆盖率减小. 关键词： MgO薄膜生长 分子动力学 计算机模拟 表面扩散     

基底显微结构对薄膜生长影响的Monte Carlo模拟研究

利用Monte Carlo方法研究了基底显微结构对薄膜生长的影响. 对不同显微结构基底上薄膜生长的初始阶段岛的形貌和尺寸与薄膜覆盖度和入射粒子沉积速率之间的关系进行了模拟和分析. 模型中考虑了粒子沉积、吸附粒子扩散和蒸发等过程. 结果表明,基底显微结构对薄膜生长具有明显影响. 当沉积温度为300K、沉积速率为0.005ML/s（Monolayer/second,简称ML/s）、覆盖度为0.05ML时,四方基底上薄膜生长呈现凝聚生长. 随着覆盖度增加,岛的尺寸变大,岛的数目减少. 而对于六方基底,当覆盖度从0.05ML变化到0.25ML时,薄膜生长经历了一个从分散生长过渡到分形生长的过程. 无论是四方还是六方基底,随着沉积速率的增加,岛的形貌由少数聚集型岛核分布状态向众多各自独立的离散型岛核分布状态过渡.     

六方晶格基底上薄膜生长的Monte Carlo模拟研究

利用Monte Carlo（MC）方法,模拟研究了六方晶格基底上薄膜生长的初始阶段岛的形貌和岛的尺寸与薄膜覆盖度以及入射粒子沉积速率之间的关系. 结果表明在基底温度为300K时,岛的形貌主要表现为分形生长,随着薄膜覆盖度的增加,岛的分形枝簇变大,岛的数目不断减少. 在同样的温度下,随着入射粒子沉积速率的增大,薄膜表面的形貌逐步由少数聚集型岛核分布状态向众多各自独立的离散型岛核分布状态过渡. 进一步研究得出,薄膜覆盖度和入射粒子沉积速率对粒子扩散能力的影响最终导致岛的形貌发生了改变.     

入射能量对Au/Au(111)薄膜生长影响的分子动力学模拟

利用分子动力学模拟了Au原子在Au(111)表面低能沉积的动力学过程.采用嵌入原子方法的原子间相互作用势,通过对沉积层原子结构的分析和薄膜表面粗糙度、层覆盖率的计算,研究了沉积粒子能量对薄膜质量的影响及其机制.结果表明:当入射能量Ein25 eV时,沉积层和基体表层均呈现规则的单晶面心立方(111)表面的排列,沉积原子仅注入到基体最表面两层,随着入射能量的增加,薄膜表面粗糙度降低,薄膜越趋于层状生长,入射能量的增加有利于薄膜的成核和致密化;当Ein 25 eV时,沉积层表面原子结构出现了较为明显的晶界,沉积原子注入到基体表面第三层及以下,随着入射能量的增加,薄膜表面粗糙度增加,沉积层和基体表层原子排列越不规则,载能沉积会降低基体内部的稳定性,导致基体和薄膜内部缺陷的产生,降低薄膜质量.此外,当基体内部某层沉积原子数约等于该层总原子数的一半时,沉积原子将能穿过该层进入到基体内部更深层.     

Kinetic Monte Carlo simulation of thin film growth

A three-dimensional kinetic Monte Carlo technique has been developed for simulating growth of thin Cu films. The model involves incident atom attachment, diffusion of the atoms on the growing surface, and detachment of the atoms from the growing surface. The related effect by surface atom diffusion was taken into account. A great improvement was made on calculation of the activation energy for atom diffusion based on a reasonable assumtion of interaction potential between atoms. The surface roughness and the relative density of the films were simulated as the functions of growth substrate temperature and film thickness. The results showed that there exists an optimum growth temperatureT _opt at a given deposition rate. When the substrate temperature approaches toT _opt, the growing surface becomes smoothing and the relative density of the films increases. The surface roughness minimizes and the relative density saturates atT _opt. The surface roughness increases with an increment of substrate, temperature when the temperature is higher thanT _opt.T _opt is a function of the deposition rate and the influence of the deposition rate on the surface roughness depends on the substrate temperatures. The simulation results also showed that the relative density decreases with the increasing of the deposition rate and the average thickness of the film.     

Study of nanoclusters growth at initial stages of ultrathin film deposition by kinetic modeling

Comparative analysis of Au, Cu, Pt, Ni and Fe nanoclusters growth on amorphous carbon substrate by proposed kinetic model based on rate equations is present. Partial sticking coefficients introduced into the model let to discriminate elementary processes such as adatom adsorption and diffusion on bare substrate and on top of islands, nucleation and mobility of islands and its coalescence, 2-d and 3-d island growth modes. The quantitative fittings of experimental time dependencies of surface coverage, clusters density, cluster size are performed by solving model equations. From the best fittings the values of phenomenological coefficients defining elementary processes are found for different materials. Comparative analysis of those coefficients let to discover mechanisms of nanoclusters formation and growth of different materials. It is shown that clusterization for Cu and Au is more favorable than for Pt and Ni. Diffusivity for Pt and Ni on amorphous carbon (a-C) substrate is significantly less than for Au and Cu. In opposite, diffusivity on the top of islands for Ni and Pt is significantly higher than for Au and Cu. The mobility of islands for Au and Cu is much higher than for Ni and Pt. The fitting of experimental curves of Fe deposition on a-C at different temperatures showed that temperature mainly influences sticking process but not diffusion.     

Coverage Dependence of Growth Mode in Heteroepitaxy of Ni on Cu(100) Surface

A realistic kinetic Monte Carlo (KMC) simulation model with physical parameters is developed, which well reproduces the heteroepitaxial growth of multilayered Ni thin film on Cu(100) surfaces at room temperature. The effects of mass transport between interlayers and edge diffusion of atoms along the islands are included in the simulation model, and the surface roughness and the layer distribution versus total coverage are calculated. Specially, the simulation model reveals the transition of growth mode with coverage and the difference between the Ni heteroepitaxy on Cu(100) and the Ni homoepitaxy on Ni(100). Through comparison of KMC simulation with the real scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) experiments, the Ehrlich-Schwoebel (ES) barrier E_es is estimated to be 0.18±0.02 eV for Ni/Cu(100) system while 0.28 eV for Ni/Ni(100). The simulation also shows that the growth mode depends strongly on the thickness of thin film and the surface temperature, and the critical thickness of growth mode transition is dependent on the growth condition such as surface temperature and deposition flux as well.     

Non-monotonous dependence of surface roughness on factors influencing energy of adatoms during thin island film growth

Many experimental results show that surface roughness of thin films can increase, decrease, stay constant or pass through the minimum with the change in substrate temperature, energy of arriving atoms or assisted beam (electrons, photons, ions), depending on material and interval of variation of those parameters. The aim of this paper is to explain and analyze this non-monotonous behavior of surface roughness by proposed kinetic model. The model is based on rate equations and includes processes of surface diffusion of adatoms, nucleation, growth and coalescence of islands in the case of thin films growth in Volmer-Weber mode. It is shown by modeling that non-monotonous dependence of surface roughness on the factors influencing energy of adatoms (e.g. temperature, assisted beam irradiation, accelerating voltage) occurs as a result of interplay between diffusion length of adatoms and size of islands, because both parameters depend on energy of adatoms. Variation of island size and diffusion length results in atomic jumps from islands forming rougher or smoother surface. The functions of surface roughness, island size, island density on diffusion length of adatoms and on other parameters are calculated and analyzed in this work.     

Modelling of an obliquely deposited thin film in three dimensions by kinetic Monte Carlo method

A simulation of the growth of an obliquely deposited thin film in a three-dimensional lattice was made using kinetic Monte Carlo method. Cu growth in three dimensions on a (001) substrate with high deposition rates has been simulated in this model. We mainly investigated the variation of three-dimensional morphology and microstructure offilms with incidence angle of sputtered flux. The relation of roughness and densities of films with incidence angle was also investigated. The simulation results show that the surface roughness increases and the relative density of thin film decreases with increasing incidence angle, respectively; the columnar structures were separated by void regions for large incidence angle and high deposition rate. The simulation results are in good agreement with experimental results.However, the orientation angle of columns is not completely consistent with the classical tangent rule.     

Effect of Incident Intensity on Films Growth in Pulsed Laser Deposition

Incident intensity, defined by the amount of particles deposited per pulse, is an important parameter in the film growth process of pulsed laser deposition （PLD）. Different from previous models, we investigate the irreversible and reversible growth processes by using a kinetic Monte Carlo method and find that island density and film morphology strongly depend on pulse intensity. At higher pulse intensities, lots of adatoms instantaneously diffuse on the substrate surface, and then nucleation easily occurs between the moving adatoms resulting in more smaller-size islands. In contrast, at the lower pulse intensities, nucleation event occurs preferentially between the single adatom and existing islands rather than forming new islands, and therefore the average island size becomes larger in this case. Additionally, our results show that substrate temperature plays an important role in film growth. In particular, it can determine the films shape and weaken the effect of pulse intensity on film growth at the lower temperatures by controlling the mobility rate of atoms. Our results can match the related theoretical and experimental results.     

Multilayer growth of BaTiO3 thin films via pulsed laser deposition: An energy-dependent kinetic Monte Carlo simulation

An energy-dependent kinetic Monte Carlo approach was proposed to simulate the multilayer growth of BaTiO₃ thin films via pulsed laser deposition, in which the four steps, such as the deposition of atoms, the diffusion of adatoms, the bonding of adatoms, and the surface migration of adatoms, were considered. Distinguishing with the traditional solid-on-solid (SOS) model, the adatom bonding and the overhanging of atoms, according to the perovskite structure, were specially adopted to describe the ferroelectric thin film growth. The activation energy was considered from the interactions between the ions, which were calculated by Born-Mayer-Huggins (BMH) potential. From the simulation the relative curves of the each layer coverage and roughness vs total coverage were obtained by varying the parameter values of the incident kinetic energy, laser repetition rate and mean deposition rate. The relationship between growth modes and the different parameters was also acquired.