| Abstract: | In the early stage of thin film preparation from vapor, growth patterns consisting of stable clusters will gradually cover almost the entire substrate surface. During this process, the density of single atoms is zero on growth patterns and the nucleation of clusters will proceed in the substrate parts uncovered by these patterns. The influence of growth pattern coverage on the nucleation of thin films has not been considered wholly in the classical theory of thin films. We will systematically study the influence of growth pattern coverage and give some correction formulas for the widely used classical theory of thin films. It was found that the classical nucleation rate is proportional to the square of the uncovered area. The corrected formulas are of particular importance in the dominant coverage case. |
