PYRAMIDAL GROWTH ON BCC(001) STABILIZES FACETS CLOSE TO (021) - A MONTE-CARLO STUDY

Epitaxial growth on bcc(001) has hem studied by means of a realistic M onte Carlo algorithm. When Ehrlich-Schwoebel barriers suppress step-do wn diffusion, the surface may be corrugated on a mesoscopic scale by a pattern of pyramid structures that, in agreement with recent theoreti cal and experimental work, grow in time according to a power law of t( 1/4) Analysis of the surface current of different vicinal surfaces sub stantiates the preference to facets with slopes lying between that of {013} and {012} in a wide range of the growth parameters. (C) 1998 Els evier Science B.V.